This open access volume discloses rich set of findings and policy recommendations for India towards achieving the SDG 2.1 target of zero hunger by 2030. Through its fourteen chapters, it takes an integrated approach by examining diverse aspects of food and nutrition security through multidisciplinary lens of Agricultural Economics, Nutrition, Crop Sciences, Anthropology and Law, while being rooted in economics. The chapters reflect this diversity in disciplines in terms of the questions posed, the data sets used, and the methodologies followed. Starting from the evolution of policy response for hunger and nutrition security, the book covers aspects such gender budgeting, dietary diversity, women’s empowerment, calorie intake norms, socio-legal aspects of right to health, subjective wellbeing, bio-fortification, crop insurance and food security linkages, interdependence of public distribution system (for food security) and employment guarantee schemes especially during COVID-19 pandemic, effects of dairy dietary supplements, and so on. With its rich discussions, the book is compelling for students, researchers, policy makers, development professionals and practitioners working in areas of food and nutrition security, SDGs, in particular SDG1, SDG2 and SDG5, and sustainable food systems.
Professor S. Mahendra Dev is Distinguished Professor at ICFAI Faculty of Social Sciences, Hyderabad, Telangana, India. He was Director and Vice Chancellor, Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research (IGIDR), Mumbai, India from 2010 to 2022. Prior to this position, he was Chairman of the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices, Ministry of Agriculture from 2008 to 2010.He was Vice Chairman of the Board of Trustees of International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), Washington, D.C. His main areas of interest are agriculture, rural economy, rural non-farm sector, economic growth, global economy, macro policies, employment and unemployment, social protection, development economics and social sector. He published around 150 articles in national and international articles. He has written or edited 20 books.
Dr. A. Ganesh-Kumar is Professor at the Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research (IGIDR), Mumbai. He is a Ph.D. from theIndian Statistical Institute, Kolkata. He specializes in computable general equilibrium (CGE) modelling with a focus on food security and grain management policies; issues in agricultural trade; pricing policies; spatial dimensions of Indian economy; and policies for sustainable human development and economic growth.
Dr. Vijay Laxmi Pandey is Professor at Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research, Mumbai, India. She is an agricultural economist by training and has over 25 years of experience working in the field of agriculture and its relations with environment, nutrition, and rural economy. She has vast experience of conducting household level surveys. She has successfully completed many national and international research and consultancy projects and has a large number of research publications, which include research papers in peer reviewed journals, book chapters, a book and policy reports.
