Lok Sabha Question No. 2038 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2016-11-28
Subject: Facilities to Tribals
Ministry: TRIBAL AFFAIRS
Asked by: JITENDRA CHAUDHURY

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

## (MINISTRY OF TRIBAL AFFAIRS) LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.2038

TO BE ANSWERED ON 28.11.2016

## FACILITIES TO TRIBALS

## 2038.SHRI JITENDRA CHAUDHURY:

Will the Minister of TRIBAL AFFAIRS be pleased to state:

(a) whether the banking facilities in the tribal areas are so inadequate that the tribals have to depend mainly on money lenders and if so, the reaction of the Government thereto;

(b) whether a large number of the tribals are engaged in cultivation and most of them are landless and practice shifting cultivation;

(c) if  so,  the  steps  taken  by  the  Government  to  help  them  in  adopting  was  methods  of cultivation; and

(d) the other steps taken by the Government to help the unemployed and the underemployed tribals in finding secondary sources of earning?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF TRIBAL AFFAIRS (SHRI JASWANTSINH BHABHOR)

- (a) Pradhan Mantri Jan-DhanYojana (PMJDY) was launched on 28.08.2014 with the main objective  of  covering  all  households  with  at  least  one  bank  account  per  household across  the  country.  Under  the  Yojana,  3.15  crore  accounts  have  been  opened  under PMJDY (2.15 crore in rural areas and 1.00 crore in urban areas) in 152 tribal districts with  total  deposit  of  Rs.4514.86  crore.  Out  of  these  3.15  crore  accounts,  0.82  crore accounts  are  zero  balance  accounts.  RuPay  cards  have  been  issued  to  2.23  crore account-holders and Aadhaar seeding has been done in 1.72 crore accounts.
- (b) & (c) As per the 2011 Census, out of total  5.09 crore ST workers, 1.76 crore  are ST cultivators and 2.26 crore are ST agricultural labourers. The farmers (including tribals) in some  parts of country still practice shifting cultivation.  The  Government  is implementing  the  Pradhan  Mantri  Krishi  Sinchayee  Yojana  (PMKSY)  in  the  country with  the  vision  of  extending  the  coverage  of  irrigation  'Har  Khet  Ko  Pani'  and improving water use efficiency 'More crop per drop' in a focused manner with end to end solution on source creation, water conservation, drought proofing, water harvesting, ground  water  recharge,  distribution,  management,  field  application  and  extension activities.  The  program  is  composed  of  three  components  namely  (i)  Accelerated Irrigation Benefit Programme (AIBP) implemented by the Ministry of Water Resources, River  Development  and  Ganga  Rejuvenation,  (ii)  PMKSY  (More  crop  per  drop) implemented by the Department of Agriculture, Cooperation and Farmers Welfare, and (iii)  Watershed  Development  Component  (WDC)  implemented  by  the  Department  of Land  Resources.  Ministry  of  Agriculture  is  the  nodal  ministry  for  implementing PMKSY.

Government is giving top priority to make farmers aware of new crop production technologies  and  providing  them  assistance  for  adopting  these  technologies  through farmers' trainings and subsidized inputs. In order to propagate improved crop production technologies in the country, Government of India has been implementing various crop development programmes, such as National Food Security Mission (NFSM), Bringing Green Revolution to Eastern India (BGREI), National Mission on Oilseeds and Oil Palm (NMOOP), Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY), Mission for Integrated Development  of  Horticulture  (MIDH),  Sub  Mission  on  Agricultural  Mechanisation (SMAM)  and  National  Mission  on  Sustainable  Agriculture  (NMSA)  in  the  country.

Under these programmes, various  activities  like  frontline  demonstrations  of  improved production technologies and newer varieties/hybrids, cluster demonstrations of improved package of practices, seed distribution of newer varieties, integrated nutrient management  and  integrated  pests  management,  improved  farm  machineries  including water saving devices, capacity building of farmers are being undertaken as recommended  by  National  Agriculture  Research  System  (NARS)  for  spread  and adoption to enhance the production and productivity of crops.

- (d) Government is pursuing a holistic approach to ameliorate the situation of unemployment among ST population across the country.  Ministry of Tribal Affairs under its Special Area  Programme  of  Article  275(1)  of  the  Constitution,  Special  Central  Assistance  to Tribal Sub-Plan (SCA to TSP) and other Central Sector / Centrally Sponsored schemes provides funds as an additive to the State Plan for economic development of tribals in the States covering skill development and employment-cum-income generation activities.  The  Ministry  has  impressed  upon  the  State  Governments  for  promotion  of need based integrated livelihood initiatives and skill upgradation of tribals to get them respectable jobs such as:
- Diversified  crops,  horticulture,  dairy  development  with  State  cooperative, backyard  poultry,  fisheries,  apiculture,  sericulture  etc.  with  proper  market linkages.
- Financing under line department schemes like milk cooperatives.
- Marketable  traditional  skills  like  paintings,  handlooms,  handicrafts,  artisans, skilled employment and other arts & crafts.
- Entrepreneurship.
- Modern  skills:  solar  cell  assembly  and  electrician,  mobile  phone  repair  etc. with appropriate placements.
- Eco tourism in Tribal areas.
- Skills  for  women:  Computer  training  hospitality,  paramedics,  ayurvedic  and tribal medicines & medical practices etc.

In  addition,  National  Scheduled  Tribes  Finance  and  Development  Corporation (NSTFDC) under the Ministry of Tribal Affairs, promotes entrepreneurial development amongst Scheduled Tribes.  This Corporation provides concessional financial assistance to  individuals  or  groups  of  STs  for  undertaking  self-employment  income  generation activities  through  its  channelizing  agencies.    Further,  Tribal  Co  -Operative  Marketing Development  Federation  of  India  Limited  (TRIFED)  imparts  skill  development  and capacity  building  training  to  tribal  Minor  Forest  Produce  (MFP)  gatherers  and  tribal artisans.

Besides these, Government has also taken other steps to provide employment to tribal population.  Some of the major initiatives are enlisted below:-

- (i) Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MNREGA) guaranteeing 150 days wage employment to STs households.
- (ii) National Rural Livelihood Mission (NRLM) which aims at creating efficient and  effective  institutional  platforms  of  the  rural  poor  enabling  them  to increase  household  income  through  sustainable  livelihood  enhancements and improved access to financial services.
- (iii) Bharat Rural Livelihood Foundation (BRLF) to facilitate and upscale civil society action in partnership with Government for transforming livelihoods and lives of rural households, with an emphasis on women, particularly in the Central Indian Tribal Region.