Legal awareness on right to food held at Lamlai
Source: The Sangai Express
Imphal, September 02 2020:
A one day legal awareness meeting on 'Right to Food' was held today at Ibudhou Pureilomba Complex, Lamlai jointly organized by Human Rights Alert (HRA) and COVID-19 Task Force, Lamlai (CTFL).
The meeting was attended by about hundred participants.
Thokchom Saimond Singh, Judicial Member, Manipur Food Commission attended the function as the chief guest, while Thokchom Nabakumar, chairman, CTFL and Babloo Loitongbam, executive director, HRA attended as presidium members.
E Dayananda, co-convenor of CTFL, in his welcome address, highlighted the difficulties faced by the people in accessing their entitlements of food grains under the National Food Security Act 2013.Advocate Okram Kiranjit, speaking as a resource person, pointed out the entitlements of the persons having Priority HouseHold (PHH) card and AAY card.
He also explained how to redress their grievances through the District Redressal Officers and the Manipur Food Commission.
Advocate N Subhaschandra, also speaking as a resource person, pointed out the 17 directives passed by the High Court of Manipur in the recent PIL filed by HRA.
Advocate Ch Korouhanba analysed the allocation of food grains of Manipur and specifically the entitlements for Lamlai.
Thokchom Saimond Singh of the Food Commission, emphasised the criticality of right to food during the on-going lockdown due to the pandemic and urged the Task Force to have specialised Sub-Committee on Food to systematically pursue their rights and entitlements.
He also encouraged the folks to make use of the Legal Aids Clinic, but added that there is not a single Clinic in the whole of Lamlai Municipal Council area.
He therefore called on the people to approach the authority concerned to open a Legal Aid Clinics at the earliest.
Delivering his presidential speech, Babloo Loitongbam, lauded the people of Lamlai for the historic role they played in the various struggles in Manipur and for remaining organised and vigilant of their rights.
He encouraged them to use the available redress mechanisms and handed over copies of the Manipuri translation of the recent High Court judgment on right to food as well as various forms to lodge complaints under the Manipur Food Security Rules.
A brisk question and answer session went on for more than an hour as the participants wanted to know more about the ways to seek redressal of their grievances and HRA lawyers' team tried to craft various possibilities of legal, social and political actions.
The meeting concluded with Thokchom Nabakumar, chairman, CTFL announcing the formation of the Right to Food Sub-Committee of CTFL to systematically pursue the cases discussed and more.
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