Right to food
Topic: Fundamental Rights and Constitutional Remedies · NCERT: Beyond NCERT
Meaning
The right to food is the right to have enough food to live. It is not listed in the Constitution. The Supreme Court read it into the right to life under Article 21 in the PUCL v. Union of India case, which began in 2001. The Court turned government food schemes into legal entitlements, meaning things people can claim as of right, not as charity. The National Food Security Act (NFSA), 2013 later put this right into a law made by Parliament.
Example
In the PUCL case, the petition pointed out that FCI godowns were full of grain while people went hungry. The Court then ordered that food schemes, such as midday meals and subsidised ration, be treated as rights.
Don't confuse with
- Directive Principles of State Policy: these are goals the State should follow, and no court can enforce them. The right to food has become enforceable through Art. 21 and the NFSA, 2013.
Related concepts
- Right to life and personal liberty
- A.K. Gopalan case
- Procedure established by law
- Due process of law
- Maneka Gandhi case
- Golden triangle
- Right to live with human dignity
- Right to livelihood
- Olga Tellis case
- Right to shelter