Food subsidy, public infra help tribals in MP, Chhattisgarh fight food insecurity, low income challenges
Tribal households in Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh face the dual challenge of low income and severe food insecurity – a situation alleviated only by the government schemes of subsidised food and public infrastructure, a status report by NGO PRADAN has shown.
The Status of Adivasi Livelihoods (SAL) 2022 report for Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh quotes the National Sample Survey (NSS) data to mention that tribal households in Madhya Pradesh have an average annual income of Rs 73,900 and in Chhattisgarh at Rs. 53,610, which is much less than the national average annual income of Rs 122,610 per agricultural household during the agricultural year 2018-19.
Also, 32 per cent of tribal households, 27 per cent of non-tribal households, and 61 per cent of particularly vulnerable tribal groups (PVTG) households in Madhya Pradesh were severely food insecure. In Chhattisgarh, 27 per cent of tribal, 42 per cent non-tribal, and 29 per cent of PVTG households reported being severely food insecure.