Abstract:

Since the establishment of modern welfare states, it has been widely accepted that the main responsibility of the State is to ensure the safety of its citizens. Due to divergent views on how far the state should go in mandating social welfare measures, such as the provision of food, the legal system has given more weight to some types of individual claims or interests than to others, including claims relating to basic needs like food, shelter, education, and health. Since the human rights approach to the issue of food and nutrition introduces normative basis and provides an element of accountability by virtue of which State can be compelled to protect certain vital interests of subjects, it is gaining popularity as an alternative to the policy-oriented programmatic approach to development. Because not everyone who is hungry or malnourished is a victim of human rights abuses, the "rights" approach is not always going to be beneficial in finding solutions to the issues that cause hunger and malnutrition. However, violations occur when States do to respect, safeguard, or fulfil the right to food, and this State failure is a significant reason why hunger and malnutrition continue to be problems. In this article, we will investigate if and how the Indian legal system upholds the right to adequate nutrition.

Description:

Food Security, human rights approach, Indian legal system