India’s Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar has said that his ministry requires more funding for implementing the proposed Food Security Bill in the country.

Pawar, who supports Congress on the food security programme, has said that the budgetary allocations for the agricultural ministry must be increased so that it can implement the programme.

The total budgeted provision for entire agriculture ministry was Rs 20,000 crore while the subsidy was Rs 65,000 crore for the year and it is expected to rise to the level of Rs 1 lakh crore in the current year.

“Solution is that unless and until we increase production, we will not be able to implement, we will not be comfortable to implement this,” he said.

The ruling Congress party is aiming to implement the programme early keeping in mind the elections in five states this year. The draft law proposes providing a legal right to subsidized foodgrains to 63.5 per cent of the country's population has been referred to the parliamentary standing committee.

The Food Bill may be difficult to implement if the allocations are not increased to boost agricultural output, according to the agricultural minister. The bill is considered a pet project of the Gandhi family.