With the vision of making South Asia free from hunger, academics, development activists, and politicians from the region yesterday said the governments must assume a right-based approach in ensuring food security instead of taking a welfare-oriented viewpoint.

They also stressed the need for building solidarity among social workers, development activists, and civil society bodies of the region to step up the movement of right to food.

"Any person dying in South Asia from hunger should be a cognisable offence, and the person responsible for that should be punished," said Prof Amitabh Kundu, senior fellow of Delhi Policy Group, India, presenting a paper on concerns and perspectives of food security.

The three-day "South Asia Right to Food Conference 2015", taking place at Nabab Nawab Ali Chowdhury Senate Bhaban of Dhaka University, was inaugurated by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Saturday.

Rashed Khan Menon, civil aviation and tourism minister, who was chief guest at the session on right to food and nutritional security, said Bangladesh would take measures for enactment of a law on right to food.

Mentioning India's recent passage of the Act on Right to Food and Nutritional Security, he said, "Bangladesh has not yet enacted any law on right to food because then the responsibility of the government will almost become an obligation. But along with other South Asian nations we need to prepare ourselves for the legislation."

The South Asian paradox of high economic growth and a large malnourished population also came up in the discussion.

At a special session on social safety nets in Bangladesh, Social Welfare Minister Syed Mohsin Ali said there were administrative weaknesses in the welfare programmes. "However, it is not possible for me alone to address these administrative problems," he said.

Alongside Bangladesh's achievements in some social development indicators, the challenges in reaching out to the most vulnerable groups including the elderly, people with disability, and the gender issues involved were also discussed.

Speaking on climate vulnerability, Dr M Asaduzzaman, former research director, Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies, called for heavy investment in agriculture research, noting that climate challenges could be dealt with through scientific innovations.

More than 1,000 local and foreign individuals from South Asian countries as well as Brazil, Honduras, the Netherlands, Kenya, Myanmar, Italy, Belgium and Nicaragua took part in the conference, hosted by over 40 national and international NGOs and DU.

At around 18 sessions, the participants also discussed other issues involving food security, including equity and rural employment, alternatives to corporate agriculture, governance of land, forest and other natural resources, and trade.