Shillong, Nov 13: In a concerted effort to ensure food security for the most vulnerable, the Department of Food, Civil Supplies, and Consumer Affairs in Meghalaya has launched the ‘Food Security’ Campaign, which focuses on sensitising the public about the National Food Security Act (NFSA) 2013 and strives to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 2 – ‘Zero Hunger.
The campaign was launched by Minister-in-Charge Comingone Ymbon at the Shillong Press Club on Monday. Minister Ymbon while addressing the press informed reporters that the Department is exploring the use of social, mainstream, and community-based media to communicate the verticals of the Department and apply a hyper-local approach to reason with the public on pertinent matters linked to the provisions of the National Food Security Act (NFSA) 2013.
The Minister further explained that the objectives of the Campaign is to create general awareness about food security being a right of the citizen and calls upon the public at ground zero community level to work together towards ‘Zero Hunger’ to meet the need of the public at the bottom of the poverty pyramid.
The One Nation One Ration Card scheme (ONORC) will also be taken up as one of the salient features of the National Food Security Act, he added.
“The campaign also aims to streamline Registration and services by encouraging the public to seed their Aadhaar card and registered mobile number with their ration card. The process will enable the ration card holding family to obtain maximum benefits from the department. Besides, the campaign will widely inform the public on the Redressal System, the tollfree helpline 1967, the use of the Electronic Point of Sale (ePoS) and other mandates of the Department”, said the Minister.
The campaign offers various citizen services, including guidance on ration card applications, consumer complaint procedures, and ePoS transaction insights. To maximise public engagement, it employs a diverse communication strategy encompassing outdoor, print, electronic, and social media, as well as public engagement through skits and roadshows, further explaining Minister Ymbon.
Collaborating closely with grassroots community organisations and leaders, the department aims to create a transparent and public-focused system. The Minister invites public participation through media, arts, and songs, releasing music videos in both Khasi and Garo languages to underscore the importance of collective efforts in ensuring food and grain security for every citizen.
Also during the press conference, the Minister released a song and music video both in Khasi and Garo to call upon the beneficiaries and impress upon each citizen the importance of collaborative efforts to ensure that each and every member of the public is assured food grains.
