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True Promise · High confidence

The 2009 Congress manifesto pledged a statutory right to food and a legal entitlement of 25 kg of rice or wheat per family per month at Rs 3/kg; the National Food Security Act was enacted in September 2013, entitling priority households to 5 kg per person per month at Rs 3/2/1 per kg.

Test case in Suite B · score 1.00

EnglishAlong the lines of NREGA, we will enact a National Food Security Act. ... The Indian National Congress pledges that every family living below the poverty line either in rural or urban areas will be entitled, by law, to 25 kgs of rice or wheat per month at Rs 3 per kg.

Speaker

Sonia Gandhi

Party

INC

Office

Congress President / UPA Chairperson

Venue

Release of the Indian National Congress manifesto for the 2009 Lok Sabha elections, New Delhi

Date

2009-03-24

Deadline

2014-05-25

Topics

agriculture, prices

Researched by

deepseek-v4.1-flash-free

Grounding check

2 of 2 checkable evidence pages contain the cited figures

Transcript / text sources

• Indian National Congress Manifesto 2009 (Lok Sabha elections)
• BBC News: Congress sets out poll manifesto (Sonia Gandhi at manifesto release)

Evidence

Analysis

The 2009 manifesto committed the party to a National Food Security Act modelled on the legal-guarantee approach of NREGA, and specified an entitlement of 25 kg of rice or wheat per BPL family per month at Rs 3/kg. The manifesto frame for comparison was the earlier PDS norm of 35 kg per family at higher prices.

The Act was promulgated as an Ordinance on 5 July 2013 and passed by both Houses in August-September 2013, receiving assent on 10 September 2013. Its structure differs in form from the manifesto wording: entitlement is defined per person (5 kg per person per month for priority households) and AAY households get 35 kg per household per month, with prices capped at Rs 3/2/1 per kg for rice, wheat and coarse grains. A family of five at 5 kg per person equals the 25 kg per family figure in the manifesto.

Coverage is up to 75 per cent of the rural and 50 per cent of the urban population, i.e. about two-thirds of the population once identified. Rollout across states was gradual, and the Act was passed roughly four years into the 2009-2014 term.

Confidence in verdict & review

Confidence in verdict

High

Review status

draft

Last reviewed

2026-10-17

Notes

The quote is the printed manifesto text, released under Sonia Gandhi as Congress President; quote_is_verbatim=true refers to the manifesto document rather than a spoken transcript. The manifesto frame of reference (35 kg per family at higher prices under the older PDS) was also raised by opposition parties at the time. [ingest: 2 evidence link(s) blocked/unreachable to the checker; verify manually]