Lok Sabha Question No. 3536 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2022-03-24
Subject: Minorities living Below Poverty Line
Ministry: MINORITY AFFAIRS
Asked by: Chinta Anuradha, Maddila  Gurumoorthy

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF MINORITY AFFAIRS

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 3536

## ANSWERED ON 24.03.2022

## MINORITIES LIVING BELOW POVERTY LINE

## 3536.  SHRIMATI CHINTA ANURADHA: SHRI MADDILA GURUMOORTHY

Will the Minister of MINORITY AFFAIRS be pleased to state:

(a) whether the Government has conducted any survey to identify the number of people from minority communities living below Poverty Line (BPL);

(b) if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor

(c)  whether  the  Government  is  contemplating  to  introduce  any  welfare  schemes  for improving living standards of minorities living below the poverty line; and

(d) if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor?

## ANSWER

## THE MINISTER OF MINORITY AFFAIRS (SHRI MUKHTAR ABBAS NAQVI)

- (a) to (d) There is no such separate poverty assessment carried out for Minorities by the Government. The Government has implemented various schemes for the welfare and upliftment of every section of the society including minorities especially economically weaker  &  underprivileged  sections  all  over  the  country  with  schemes  like  Pradhan Mantri  Jan  Arogya  Yojana  (PMJAY),  Pradhan  Mantri  Mudra  Yojana  (PMMY), Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM KISAN), Pradhan Mantri UjjwalaYojana (PMUY),  Pradhan  Mantri  AwasYojana  (PMAY),  Beti  Bachao  Beti  Padhao  Yojana, etc.

Ministry  of  Minority  Affairs  also  implements  programmes/  schemes  for  socioeconomic  and  educational  empowerment  of  the  six  (6)  centrally  notified  minority communities  namely  Christians,  Sikhs,  Buddhists,  Muslims,  Parsis  and  Jains.  These schemes/programmes implemented by the Ministry in brief are as under:-

## (A) Educational Empowerment

- (i) Scholarship  Schemes-  Pre-Matric  Scholarship,  Post-Matric  Scholarship  and Merit-cum-Means based Scholarship. During the last 7 years, more than 5.20 crore  beneficiaries  have  been  provided  different  scholarships  through  the National Scholarship  Portal (NSP) and Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) out of which more than 53% beneficiaries are female.
- (ii) Maulana  Azad  National  Fellowship  Scheme,  provides  financial  assistance  to students from notified minority communities, to pursue higher education such as M.Phil and Ph.D.
- (iii) In addition, the Maulana Azad Education Foundation implements the scheme viz. Begum Hazrat Mahal National Scholarship for meritorious girls belonging to minorities studying in Classes IX to XII.
- (iv) Naya Savera - Free Coaching and Allied Scheme which aims to enhance skills and knowledge of students and candidates from minority communities where total  annual  family  income  is  less  than  Rs.  6  lakh,  to  get  employment  in Government  Sector/  Public  Sector  Undertaking,  jobs  in  private  sector,  and admission in reputed institutions in technical and professional courses at undergraduate and post-graduate levels. During last seven  years 69,544 candidates have been benefitted under the Naya Savera scheme.

## (B) Economic Empowerment

- (a) Seekho  aur  Kamao  (Learn  &  Earn):  It  is  a skill  development  initiative  for minorities and aims to upgrade  the skills of minority youth in various

modern/traditional skills depending upon their qualification, present economic trends  and  market  potential,  which  can  earn  them  suitable  employment  or make them suitably skilled to go for self-employment. Since, 2014-15 approx. 3.92 lakh beneficiaries have been trained/allocated under the scheme.

- (b) A  mission  has  been  launched  by  the  Ministry  of  Minority  Affairs  under 'Upgrading the Skill and Training in Traditional Arts/Crafts for Development (USTTAD)'  scheme  to  give  an  effective  platform  to  minority  artisans  and culinary  experts  from  across  the  country  to  showcase  and  market  their finest handicraft and exquisitely crafted products through 'Hunar Haats'organized by the Ministry. Ministry has engaged institutions of national repute  namely,  National  Institute  of  Fashion  Technology  (NIFT),  National Institute  of  Design  (NID) and Indian Institute of Packaging (IIP) to work in various  craft  clusters  for  design  intervention,  product  range  development, packaging, exhibitions and brand building etc.  So far, Ministry has organised 38 'Hunar Haats' in which more than 5.5 lakhs artisans and people associated with them have been provided employment and employment opportunities, out of which more than 50% beneficiaries are women.
- (c) Nai  Manzil  -  A  scheme  to  provide  education  and  skill  training  to  the  youth from minority communities.
- (d) Gharib Nawaz Employment Training Programme for providing short-term job oriented skill development courses to youths belonging to minority communities.
- (e) National Minorities Development Finance Corporation  (NMDFC)  Loan Schemes provide concessional loans for self-employment and income generating  activities  for  the  socio-economic  development  of  the  'backward sections' amongst the notified minorities.

In addition, another scheme  namely Pradhan Mantri Jan  Vikas  Karyakram (PMJVK) is implemented by the Ministry of Minority Affairs,  which aims to improve the socio-economic conditions and basic amenities of minorities so as to improve their quality  of  life  and  reduce  imbalances  in  the  identified  Minority  Concentration  Areas (MCA).   In  2018,  the  areas  covered  under  PMJVK  was  increased  from  90  Districts originally to  308  Districts  in  33  States/UTs.  The  MCAs  included  870  Minority Concentration  Blocks  (MCBs)  and  321  Minority  Concentration  Towns  (MCTs),  109 Minority  Concentration  District  Headquarters  (MCD  Hqrs).  PMJVK  has  recently  been restructured  and  approved  by  the  cabinet  on  19.01.2022  for  continuation  over  the  15 th Finance Commission Cycle.  The Scheme is now being implemented in all Districts of the  Country.    The  major  projects  approved  under  PMJVK  are  in  sectors  of  education, health  and  skill,  and  include  Residential  Schools,  School  buildings,  Hostels,  Degree Colleges,  ITIs,  Polytechnics,  Sadbhav  Mandaps,  Health  Centres,  Skill  Centres,  Sports facilities, Drinking Water facilities, sanitation facilities etc. In the last 7 years, under the 'Pradhan Mantri Jan Vikas Karykram' (PMJVK) more than 49,000 major infrastructure projects  have  been  created  such  as  schools,  colleges,  hostels,  community  centres, common service centres, ITIs, Polytechnics, Girls Hostels, Sadbhavana Mandap, Hunar Hub etc in backward Minority concentrated areas across the country.

Further, under Prime Minister's New 15 Point Programme for welfare of minorities, the Government ensures that the benefits of various government schemes for the underprivileged reach the disadvantaged sections of the minority communities. Under the programme, it is provisioned that, wherever possible, 15% of targets and outlays under various  schemes  should  be  earmarked  for  minorities.  Details  of  the  schemes  being implemented by Ministry of Minority Affairs is available at https://www.minorityaffairs.gov.in /en/schemes performance.

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