Lok Sabha Question No. 590 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2024-11-28
Subject: Welfare Schemes for Scheduled Tribes in Gujarat
Ministry: TRIBAL AFFAIRS
Asked by: Shri Jaswantsinh Sumanbhai Bhabhor

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF TRIBAL AFFAIRS

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO- †590

TO BE ANSWERED ON- 28/11/2024

## WELFARE SCHEMES FOR SCHEDULED TRIBES IN GUJARAT

†590. SHRI JASWANTSINH SUMANBHAI BHABHOR:

Will the Minister of TRIBAL AFFAIRS be pleased to state:

- (a)  whether  the  Government  has  implemented  any  project/programme/welfare  scheme  for  the development of STs in Gujarat, particularly in Dahod district;
- (b) if so, the details thereof;
- (c) whether the Government has conducted any study to assess the conditions and strength of tribes and if so, the number of tribes in other tribal dominated districts of the country;
- (d) whether any monitoring mechanism has been put in place for their all-round development;
- (e) if so, the details thereof; and
- (f) if not, the reasons therefor?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE FOR TRIBAL AFFAIRS (SHRI DURGADAS UIKEY)

(a)  to  (b): Government  is  implementing  Tribal  Sub-Plan  (TSP)  (now known  as  Development Action Plan for Scheduled Tribes (DAPST)) as a strategy for the development of Scheduled Tribes and areas having tribal concentration in the country for improving the social condition of the tribals.  Besides  Ministry  of  Tribal  Affairs,  41  Ministries/Departments  are  allocating  certain percentage  of  their  total  scheme  budget  every  year  for  tribal  development  under  DAPST  for various  tribal  development  projects  relating  to  education,  health,  agriculture,  irrigation,  roads, housing, electrification, employment generation, skill development, etc.

Further, Ministry of Tribal Affairs is implementing various schemes/programmes for the welfare and development of the of the Scheduled Tribes (STs) in the country including Gujarat. Details of major schemes/programmes implemented by the Ministry are given at Annexure .

(c): Ministry of Tribal Affairs through Centrally Sponsored scheme of 'Support to Tribal Research Institutes' is providing financial assistance to State / UTs for various activities to be undertaken by  State  Tribal  Research  Institutes.  These  State  TRIs  take  up  research  studies/publication  of books/documentation on tribal cultural heritage. The domain of research studies carried out by State  TRIs  includes  tribal  traditions  and  various  social  and  cultural  practices,  which  are characteristic  to  the  particular  tribal  communities.  Ministry  of  Tribal  Affairs  has  undertaken evaluation studies of its schemes through third party. The evaluation reports inter-alia indicated the conditions of tribal communities in the country.

Further, Ministry uses data pertaining to Census, management information systems and large-scale sample surveys conducted by different Ministries/ Departments of Government of India to assess the conditions of STs. The data reveals that over the years considerable improvements have been registered  in  socio-economic  indicators  with  respect  to  the  Scheduled  Tribes  (STs)  in  the country. There are over 700 Scheduled Tribes notified under Article 342 of the Constitution of India, spread over different States and Union Territories (UTs) of the Country.

## (d) to (f): The monitoring mechanism put in place is as detailed below: -

- i. Release  of  funds  to  States/UTs  in  the  scheme  is  made  through  Public  Financial Management System (PFMS) platform.
- ii. Utilization Certificates are insisted upon as a pre-requisite for further release of funds as per the norms of GFR.
- iii. Progress reports regarding the status of implementation of scheme is obtained.
- iv. Officers  while  visiting  States/UTs  also  ascertain  the progress  of implementation  of  the scheme.
- v. Meetings/ Conferences are convened at the Central level with State officials for ensuring timely  submission  of  proposals,  speeding  up  of  implementation  of  the  scheme,  and reviewing the physical and financial progress.
- vi. Scheme/programme-wise  progress  and  utilization  of  funds  are  also  monitored  through dedicated online portals and performance dashboard.
- vii. To  regularly  monitor  the  intervention-wise  or  ministry-wise  progress  of  the  mission, ministry-wise interactive dashboards have been developed on PM Gati Shakti portal under PM JANMAN
- viii. Ministry of Tribal Affairs has developed STC  MIS  Portal with web address: https://stcmis.gov.in for monitoring of Tribal Sub-Plan (TSP) / Schedule Tribe Component (STC) funds of obligated Ministries/Departments.
- ix. Besides, evaluation of the schemes is conducted from time to time.

Annexure referred to in reply to parts (a) to (b) of the Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No. †590  for  28.11.2024  by SHRI  JASWANTSINH  SUMANBHAI  BHABHOR regarding 'WELFARE SCHEMES FOR SCHEDULED TRIBES IN GUJARAT'

## Brief details of major schemes/programmes being implemented by the Ministry of Tribal Affairs in the country:

- (i) Dharti Aaba Janjatiya Gram Utkarsh Abhiyan: Hon'ble PM launched Dharti Aaba Janjatiya Gram  Utkarsh  Abhiyan  on  2nd  October,  2024.  The  Abhiyan  comprises  of  25  interventions implemented by 17-line Ministries and aims to saturate infrastructural gaps in 63,843 villages, improve access to health, education, Anganwadi facilities and providing livelihood opportunities benefiting more than 5 crore tribals in 549 districts and 2,911 blocks in 30 States/UTs in 5 years. The Abhiyan has total budgetary outlay of Rs.79,156 Cr (Central share: ₹56,333 Cr and State share: ₹22,823 Cr).
- (ii) Pradhan Mantri Janjati Adivasi Nyaya Maha Abhiyan (PM JANMAN): Government has launched  Pradhan  Mantri  Janjati  Adivasi  Nyaya  Maha  Abhiyan  (PM-JANMAN)  on  15th November 2023, which is celebrated as Janjatiya Gaurav Divas. The mission with financial outlay of around Rs.24,000 Crore aims to saturate PVTG households and habitations with basic facilities such as safe housing, clean drinking water and sanitation, improved access to education, health and  nutrition,  road  and  telecom  connectivity,  electrification  of  un-electrified  households  and sustainable livelihood opportunities in time bound manner in 3 years.
- (iii) Pradhan Mantri Jan Jatiya Vikas Mission (PMJVM): The Ministry of Tribal Affairs is implementing the Pradhan Mantri Jan Jatiya Vikas Mission (PMJVM), which has been designed through  the  merger  of  two  existing  schemes  for  the  promotion  of  tribal  livelihood,  i.e., 'Mechanism  for  Marketing  of  Minor  Forest  Produce  (MFP)  through  Minimum  Support  Price (MSP) and Development of Value Chain for MFP' and 'Institutional Support for Development and Marketing of Tribal Products/Produce'.

The scheme envisages fixation and declaration of Minimum Support Price for the selected MFP. Procurement and Marketing operation at pre-fixed MSP will be undertaken by the designated State Agencies in the event of the prevailing market price of the particular MFP item falling below the stipulated MSP. Simultaneously other medium- and long-term issues like sustainable collection, value  addition,  infrastructure  development,  knowledge  base  expansion  of  MFP  and  market intelligence development will also be addressed.

- (iv) Eklavya Model Residential Schools (EMRS): Eklavya Model Residential Schools (EMRSs) were introduced in the year 1997-98 to impart quality education exclusively to ST children with an objective to provide quality middle and high-level education to Scheduled Tribe (ST) students in remote areas in order to enable them to avail of reservation in high and professional educational courses and get jobs in government and public and private sectors. In the Union Budget of 201819, Government announced that every block with more than 50% ST population and at least 20,000 ST persons will be eligible to have an Eklavya Model Residential School. A total number of 740 EMRSs are scheduled to be established. Eklavya schools will be on par with Navodaya Vidyalayas and will have special facilities for preserving local art and culture besides providing training in sports and skill development.

(v) Grants under Article 275(1) of the Constitution :  Under the Proviso to Article 275(1) of Constitution,  Grants  are  released  to  States,  having  ST  population  for  raising  the  level  of administration in Scheduled Areas and for the welfare of tribal people. This is a Special Area Programme and 100% grants are provided to States. Funds are released to the   State Governments depending on the felt needs of ST population to bridge the gap in infrastructure activities in the fields of education, health, skill development, livelihood, drinking water, sanitation, etc.

(vi)  Grant-in  Aid  to  Voluntary  Organizations  working  for  the  welfare  of  Scheduled Tribes: Under the scheme of Grant-in-Aid to Voluntary Organizations working for the welfare of Scheduled  Tribes,  the  Ministry  funds  projects  in  the  fields  of  education  and  health,  covering residential  schools,  non-residential  schools,  hostels,  mobile  dispensaries,  ten  or  more  bedded hospitals, livelihood, etc.

(vii)  Pre-Matric Scholarships to ST students :  The  scheme is applicable to students who are studying in Classes IX -X.  Parental income from all sources should not be more than Rs.2.50 lakhs per annum. Scholarship of Rs.225/-per month for day scholars and Rs.525/-per month for hostellers is given for a period of 10 months in a year. Scholarship is disbursed through the State Government/UT Administration. Funding ratio is 75:25 between Centre and States for all States except  North  East  and  Hills  States/UT  like  Himachal  Pradesh,  Uttarakhand  and  Jammu  and Kashmir where it is 90:10. For UTs without legislature sharing pattern is 100% Central share.

(viii) Post Matric Scholarship to ST students: The objective of the scheme is to provide financial assistance to the Scheduled   Tribe   students   studying   at   post-matriculation or post-secondary levels to enable them to complete their education.  Parental income from all sources should not be more than  Rs.2.50  lakhs  per  annum.  Compulsory  fees  charged  by  educational  institutions  are reimbursed  subject  to  the  limit  fixed  by  the  concerned  State  Fee  fixation  committee  and scholarship amount of Rs.230 to Rs.1200 per month, depending upon the course of study is paid. The  Scheme  is  implemented  by  the  State  Governments  and  Union  Territory  Administrations. Funding ratio is 75:25 between Centre and States for all States except NE and Hilly States/UT of Himachal Pradesh,  Uttarakhand  and  Jammu  and  Kashmir  where  it  is  90:10.  For  UTs  without legislature sharing pattern is 100% Central share.

(ix)  National  Overseas  Scholarships for ST  Candidates: The Scheme provides for financial assistance to selected students to pursue Post Graduation, PhD & Post-Doctoral study abroad.  A total of 20 awards are given every year.  Of these, 17 awards are for STs and 3 awards for students belonging to Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs).  Parental/family income from all sources should not exceed Rs.6.00 lakhs per annum.

## (x) National Fellowship &Scholarship for Higher Education of ST students:

(a)National Scholarship- (Top class) Scheme [Graduate level]: The objective of the scheme is to encourage meritorious ST students for pursuing studies in prescribed courses in any of the 265 institutions of excellence across the country like IITs, AIIMS, IIMs, NIITs, etc. identified by the Ministry. Family income from all sources should not exceed Rs.6.00 lakhs per annum. Scholarship amount includes tuition fees, living expenses and allowances for books and computer.

(b) National Fellowship for ST students: 750 fellowships are provided to ST students each year for pursing higher studies in India for MPhil and PhD. Fellowship is granted as per UGC norms.

(xi)  Support  to  Tribal  Research  Institutes  (TRIs): Ministry  extends  support  to  the  State Governments through the Scheme to set up new TRIs where it didn't  exist and to strengthen functioning of existing TRIs to carry out its core responsibility towards Research  & Documentations, Training and capacity building, promotion of rich tribal heritage etc. To preserve tribal art and culture, financial assistance is provided to TRI's to carry out various activities to preserve  and  promote  tribal  culture  and  heritage  across  the  country  through  research  and documentation,  maintenance  and  preservation  of  art  &  artefacts,  setting  up  of  tribal  museum, exchange visits for the tribals to other parts of the State, organizing tribal festivals etc. Funding under this Scheme is 100% grant-in-aid by the Ministry of Tribal Affairs to the TRIs on need basis with the approval of APEX Committee.

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