TRIBAL DEVELOPMENT IN INDIA - Bhure Lal
On Sunday, May 23, 2010 10:28:15 PM UTC+5:30, tutulu wrote: > > TRIBAL DEVELOPMENT IN INDIA > > Bhure Lal* > > The Scheduled Tribes (STs) according to the 1991 Census account > for 67.76 millions representing 8.08 per cent of the country's > population. They are spread across the country mainly in the forest > and hilly regions. More than 70 per cent of the ST population is > concentrated in Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Orissa, Bihar, Andhra > Pradesh, West Bengal and Gujarat. The essential characteristics of > these communities are primitive traits, geographical isolation, > distinctive culture, shyness of contact with communiies at large and > backwardness. > > The founding fathers of the Indian constitution were aware of > their problems. Therefore, they made special provisions for their > protection and development. The main safeguards include promotion of > educational and economic interests and their protection from social > injustices and all forms of exploitation. The constitution protects > the general rights of all Indian citizens to move freely, settle > anywhere and acquire property. It also permits the States to make > reservation in public services in case of inadequate representation > and requiring them to consider their claims in appointments to public > services. The constitution provides special representation for the STs > in the Lok Sabha and State legislative assemblies till 25th January, > 2010 (Arts, 330, 332 and 334) and enjoins the setting up of separate > departments in the States and National Commission at the Centre to > promote their welfare and safeguard their interests (Arts 164 and > 338). Special provision for administration and control of Schedule > Areas and Tribal Areas (Art. 224, Fifth and Sixth Schedules) and grant > -in-aid to the States to meet the cost of such schemes of development > as may be undertaken by them for promoting the welfare of the Schedule > Tribes or raising the level of Schedule Areas (Art. 275 (1) are also > guaranteed. Later on with a view to effectively deal with the crimes > against the Scheduled Tribes two special laws, viz., Protection of > Civil Rights Act, 1955 and the Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes > (Prevention of Atrocities) Act 1989 were enacted. > > Special economic development of the Scheduled Tribes and > protection against their exploitation has been an important agenda of > the Government. To ensure that the constitutional mandates listed > above and translated into various policies and programmes and put into > effective action, high priority for the welfare and development of > Scheduled Tribes right from the beginning of the First Five Year Plan > (1952-57 is being accorded. Recognising their special problems the > principles of Panchsheel have been adopted in the welfare and > development of these communities so as to ensure an understanding of > their culture and traditions and an appreciation of the social, > psychological and economic problems with which they are faced. An > important landmark was opening of 43 Special Multi-purpose Tribal > Blocks (SMPTBs) during the Second Five Year Plan, later called Tribal > Development Blocks (TDBs), each having about 25000 people as against > 65000 in a normal block. An amount of Rs.15.0 lakh per SMPTB was > contributed by the Central Government. Further, an important step in > this direction was taken during the Fourth Five Year Plan when six > pilot projects in Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and Orissa > were set up in the Central sector. A separate Tribal Development > Agency was established for each project and an amount of Rs.2.0 crore > was allotted to these agencies. Commissions and Committees appointed > by the Government to review the tribal situation brought to its notice > that the percolation theory had not helped the tribals in getting > their due share and the backward classes sector had substituted > general sectors instead of supplementing them and viewed that much > more was still needed to be done to bring up the STs on par with the > general population of the country. > > Tribal Sub-Plan > > The Fifth Five Year Plan marked a shift in the approach when the > Tribal Sub Plan (TSP) for direct benefit of the STs was launched. The > Tribal Sub-Plan for the Scheduled Tribes was designed to channelise > the flow of outlays and benefits from the general sectors in the plans > of the States and Union Territories (UTs) and Central Ministries in > proportion to their population both in physical and financial terms. > It is an umbrella under which all schemes implemented by the States > and Central Governments are dovetailed for addressing different needs > of the Scheduled Tribes. > > It is basically an area development programme with focus on > tribals under which infrastructural development and family-oriented > programmes are undertaken. The strategy has been successful in > garnering larger flow of funds for the development of Scheduled Tribes > from Rs. 759 crore during the Fifth Five Year Plan to about Rs. > 16902.66 crore by the end of the Eighth Five Year Plan (1992-97). > > The Ministry of Tribal Affairs, besides providing Special Central > Assistance, which is an additive to the Tribal Sub Plan of the States > and UTs and grants under Article 275 (1) of the Constitution for > raising the level of infrastructure in the Scheduled Areas and > economic development of the Scheduled Tribes to the level of general > population, is also implementing various Centrally-sponsored and > Central sector schemes under which financial assistance ranging from > 50 per cent to 100 per cent is given to the States and UTs for > construction of hostels and coaching of ST students for competitive > examinations, upgradation of their merit, research and training, > setting up of ashram schools, vocational training centres, village > grain banks, educational complexes for ST girls in low literacy > pockets and development of primitive tribal groups. Besides, non- > governmental organisations (NGOs) have also been involved in the > development of STs. Their developmental and financial needs are being > taken care of over and above the credit available through priority > sector lending of banks and other institutions by the NSFDC. > > With the prime objective of providing marketing assistance and > remunerative prices to tribals for their minor forest produce (MFP) > and surplus agricultural produce (SAP) and to wean them away from > exploitative private traders and middlemen, the Tribal Cooperative > Marketing Development Federation (TRIFED) was set up by the Government > in the year 1987. The TRIFED has ensured remunerative prices for the > MFP to tribals. > > While these achievements are a matter of some satisfaction as > various development plans, policies and programmes have brought forth > a perceptible improvement in the socio-economic status of the > Scheduled Tribes a lot more needs to be done with concerted focus on > the issues crucial to improve their status on par with the rest of the > population. These are: prevention of land alienation from tribal to no- > tribal, review of National Forest Policy and Forest (Conservation) Act > 1980, taking into consideration symbiotic relationship the tribals are > having with forest, provision of clean drinking water and medical > facilities, effective rehabilitatiion of the tribals displaced on > account of setting up of development projects and legal measures to > crub the activities of money lenders and traders by effective > implementation of laws and regulations. Women play a significant role > in tribal society: their empowerment with upgradation of their skills > is one of the issues to be addressed urgently. To look into these > issues and further focus attention on the development of tribals the > Government has set up separate Ministry under the charge of a Cabinet > Minister. The Government is working hard towards a new social order > based on social equality and social harmony > -- ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Now its time for Tribal Integrity for Utilizing PESA & 5th Schedule for "Swayatt Adivasi Jilha". Lets save natural resources save tribals. Lets do it together! Subscribe AYUSH YouTube Channel (Viewed more than 1,40,000 minutes): http://www.youtube.com/user/adiyuva?sub_confirmation=1 Learn More about AYUSH online at : http://www.adiyuva.in/2013/10/ayush.html --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "AYUSH | adivasi yuva shakti" group. 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