During liberalization in India, public works programmes are intended to be more targeted and integrated with other social objectives through innovative designing. In particular, the government is all set to use public works programmes, known for their self-selective properties, as a nationwide instrument to confer earning opportunity to rural people backed by legal reinforcement. This chapter considers targeting as the principal qualification of any welfare programme in today's context. Using NSSO data on four different states, it examines how far existing programmes have successfully targeted the food insecure in India.
Keywords: food insecurity, poverty alleviation, cereal consumption, liberalization, India