What Is the Full Form of PDS in Agriculture?

The Full Form of ‘PDS’ in Agriculture is ‘Public Distribution System’.

Full Form of PDS

The full form of PDS in agriculture is Public Distribution System. This system is used to distribute goods and services to the population at large. It was introduced by the government of India in 1997 as part of its poverty alleviation programme.

The PDS has been designed to ensure that essential commodities like food grains, sugar, edible oil, kerosene etc are available at reasonable prices throughout the country. The commodities are procured from the farmers or manufacturers and then made available at designated fair-price shops. These shops are operated by various state governments and local bodies and are spread across rural villages, urban towns and cities.

The main aim of PDS is to provide basic food items at subsidised rates to people living below the poverty line (BPL) and other vulnerable sections of society such as women, children and elderly persons. As per the guidelines issued by the Government, each family is entitled to receive a fixed quota of essential commodities every month depending upon its size and socio-economic status.

The PDS also ensures that agricultural produce from small farmers reaches consumers in a timely manner without any wastage or spoilage. The system helps protect farmers from exploitation by middlemen who often charge exorbitant prices for their produce. In addition, it checks inflationary trends in food prices through timely distribution of food grains thus helping combat rising costs of living for poor households.

PDS also encourages self-sustenance among agricultural communities as it provides employment opportunities for people involved in stocking, transporting and distributing these goods from producers to consumers. Moreover, it also helps reduce hunger amongst those who face malnutrition due to lack of access to adequate nutrition sources.

The success of public distribution system depends upon its effective implementation which can be done only if all stakeholders including state governments, central government agencies and local bodies work together towards achieving common goals such as ensuring equitable distribution of resources amongst BPL families and providing quality products at affordable prices. As such, regular monitoring should be done to assess if the objectives have been met or not so that corrective measures can be taken if required.

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