UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — A timely reset for the Food Security Act

Q1. With reference to the entitlement of Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY) households under the National Food Security Act, 2013 as in force and under the draft National Food Security (Amendment) Bill, 2026, consider the following statements: 1. As the law stands, an AAY household receives 35 kg of foodgrains per family per month irrespective of the number of its members, whereas a priority household receives 5 kg per person per month. 2. The draft Bill replaces the household-based AAY quota with a per-person quota and removes every ceiling on the quantity that a single AAY household may draw in a month. 3. Under the norm proposed in the draft Bill, every AAY household without exception would draw a larger monthly quantity of foodgrains than it draws at present. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. As the law stands, an AAY household receives 35 kg of foodgrains per family per month irrespective of the number of its members, whereas a priority household receives 5 kg per person per month.
  2. The draft Bill replaces the household-based AAY quota with a per-person quota and removes every ceiling on the quantity that a single AAY household may draw in a month.
  3. Under the norm proposed in the draft Bill, every AAY household without exception would draw a larger monthly quantity of foodgrains than it draws at present.
  • A. 1 only
  • B. 1 and 2 only
  • C. 2 and 3 only
  • D. 1, 2 and 3

Q2. Under the entitlement norm proposed in the draft National Food Security (Amendment) Bill, 2026, what is the smallest household size at which an Antyodaya Anna Yojana household would draw the maximum monthly quantity of foodgrains permissible to it?

  • A. Four members, beyond which the entitlement stays unchanged
  • B. Five members, beyond which the entitlement stays unchanged
  • C. Seven members, beyond which the entitlement stays unchanged
  • D. Eight members, beyond which the entitlement stays unchanged

Q3. Consider the following statements regarding the National Food Security Act, 2013: 1. The Act extends coverage to up to 75 per cent of the rural and up to 50 per cent of the urban population, together amounting to about two-thirds of the country's population. 2. Under Schedule I of the Act, foodgrains were priced at Rs 3, Rs 2 and Rs 1 per kg for rice, wheat and nutri-cereals for priority households, while Antyodaya Anna Yojana households received the same grains free of cost from the commencement of the Act. 3. The number of persons to be covered in the rural and urban areas of a State is determined by the Central Government, while the identification of eligible households within that number is done by the State Government. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. The Act extends coverage to up to 75 per cent of the rural and up to 50 per cent of the urban population, together amounting to about two-thirds of the country's population.
  2. Under Schedule I of the Act, foodgrains were priced at Rs 3, Rs 2 and Rs 1 per kg for rice, wheat and nutri-cereals for priority households, while Antyodaya Anna Yojana households received the same grains free of cost from the commencement of the Act.
  3. The number of persons to be covered in the rural and urban areas of a State is determined by the Central Government, while the identification of eligible households within that number is done by the State Government.
  • A. 1 and 2 only
  • B. 2 and 3 only
  • C. 1 and 3 only
  • D. 1, 2 and 3

Q4. Under the National Food Security Act, 2013, the expression 'priority households' denotes which one of the following?

  • A. Households given the first claim on foodgrains whenever central allocation to a State falls short, supplied at the central issue price fixed by the Centre
  • B. Households below the poverty line identified by the Central Government on the basis of deprivation criteria, entitled to 35 kg of foodgrains per family per month
  • C. Households identified by the State Government within the coverage determined for its rural and urban areas, entitled to 5 kg of foodgrains per person per month
  • D. Households drawing foodgrains under the Antyodaya Anna Yojana, entitled to 7 kg of foodgrains per person per month subject to a household ceiling

Q5. The supply of free foodgrains to National Food Security Act beneficiaries under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana is operationalised at the Union level by which one of the following?

  • A. Department of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare
  • B. Department of Food and Public Distribution, Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution
  • C. Department of Consumer Affairs, Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution
  • D. Department of Rural Development, Ministry of Rural Development

Q6. With reference to the free supply of foodgrains approved by the Union Cabinet under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana with effect from 1 January 2024, consider the following statements: 1. The free supply was approved for a period of five years and covers about 81.35 crore persons. 2. The entire expenditure on the food subsidy for this supply is borne by the Central Government, with no cost-sharing contribution required from the States. 3. Antyodaya Anna Yojana households continued to pay Rs 1, Rs 2 and Rs 3 per kg for nutri-cereals, wheat and rice, the free supply being confined to priority households. 4. The continued universal supply of fortified rice under this scheme was approved up to December 2028 with hundred per cent funding by the Government of India. Which of the statements given above is/are NOT correct?

  1. The free supply was approved for a period of five years and covers about 81.35 crore persons.
  2. The entire expenditure on the food subsidy for this supply is borne by the Central Government, with no cost-sharing contribution required from the States.
  3. Antyodaya Anna Yojana households continued to pay Rs 1, Rs 2 and Rs 3 per kg for nutri-cereals, wheat and rice, the free supply being confined to priority households.
  4. The continued universal supply of fortified rice under this scheme was approved up to December 2028 with hundred per cent funding by the Government of India.
  • A. 1 and 3
  • B. 2 and 4
  • C. 1, 2 and 4
  • D. 3 only

Q7. The ceiling of 81.35 crore persons that governs coverage under the National Food Security Act is arrived at from which one of the following?

  • A. Population projections for 2021 prepared by the Registrar General of India for rural and urban areas of each State
  • B. Deprivation indicators recorded for rural and urban households in the Socio-Economic and Caste Census, 2011
  • C. Rural and urban population reported in the Census of India, 2011, read with the coverage limits laid down in the Act
  • D. Ration cards digitised by the States under the Targeted Public Distribution System at the commencement of the Act

Q8. Under the entitlement norms of the National Food Security Act, 2013 as they presently stand, which one of the following beneficiary households receives the largest quantity of foodgrains per person per month?

  • A. A seven-member Antyodaya Anna Yojana household
  • B. An eight-member priority household
  • C. A four-member priority household
  • D. A four-member Antyodaya Anna Yojana household

Q9. In the Household Consumption Expenditure Survey 2023-24, a second set of estimates was released alongside the main results and described as being 'with imputation'. These estimates are those in which—

  • A. expenditure reported in current prices is adjusted for price differences prevailing between rural and urban areas within each State
  • B. the values of items received by households free of cost through social welfare programmes are assigned a value and added to consumption
  • C. the rental value of dwellings occupied by their owners is estimated and added to the rent actually paid by tenant households
  • D. the entries of sample households that did not respond are filled in using the average for the same item group in that State

Q10. Consider the following statements comparing the results of the Household Consumption Expenditure Survey for 2023-24 with those for 2022-23: 1. Average monthly per capita consumption expenditure, reckoned without imputation, rose from about Rs 3,773 to about Rs 4,122 in rural India and from about Rs 6,459 to about Rs 6,996 in urban India. 2. Consumption inequality as measured by the Gini coefficient declined in both rural and urban areas. 3. Non-food items accounted for a larger share of average monthly expenditure in rural India than in urban India. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. Average monthly per capita consumption expenditure, reckoned without imputation, rose from about Rs 3,773 to about Rs 4,122 in rural India and from about Rs 6,459 to about Rs 6,996 in urban India.
  2. Consumption inequality as measured by the Gini coefficient declined in both rural and urban areas.
  3. Non-food items accounted for a larger share of average monthly expenditure in rural India than in urban India.
  • A. 1 and 3 only
  • B. 2 and 3 only
  • C. 1 and 2 only
  • D. 1, 2 and 3

Q11. Consider the following statements regarding the respective responsibilities of the Centre and the States in the Targeted Public Distribution System: 1. Procurement of foodgrains at minimum support price, maintenance of buffer stocks and transportation of grain up to the designated depots are central responsibilities discharged through the Food Corporation of India, while movement from those depots to fair price shops rests with the State Governments. 2. The identification of eligible households within the coverage determined for a State, and the issue of ration cards to them, are carried out by the Central Government through the Food Corporation of India. 3. Fair price shops are licensed and supervised by the State Governments, and nearly all of them now operate through electronic point of sale devices enabling biometric or Aadhaar-authenticated distribution. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. Procurement of foodgrains at minimum support price, maintenance of buffer stocks and transportation of grain up to the designated depots are central responsibilities discharged through the Food Corporation of India, while movement from those depots to fair price shops rests with the State Governments.
  2. The identification of eligible households within the coverage determined for a State, and the issue of ration cards to them, are carried out by the Central Government through the Food Corporation of India.
  3. Fair price shops are licensed and supervised by the State Governments, and nearly all of them now operate through electronic point of sale devices enabling biometric or Aadhaar-authenticated distribution.
  • A. 1 and 2 only
  • B. 1 and 3 only
  • C. 2 and 3 only
  • D. 1, 2 and 3

Q12. Fortified rice is supplied not only through the Targeted Public Distribution System but also to the Integrated Child Development Services, under which supplementary nutrition is provided to children aged six months to fifty-nine months and to pregnant and lactating women. That scheme is administered by which one of the following?

  • A. Ministry of Women and Child Development
  • B. Ministry of Health and Family Welfare
  • C. Department of School Education and Literacy, Ministry of Education
  • D. Department of Food and Public Distribution, Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution