22 Evolution of tribal development policies and programs

Prof. Anup Kumar Kapoor

Article 366 (25) of the Constitution of India refers to Scheduled Tribes as those communities, who are scheduled in accordance with Article 342 of the Constitution. This Article says that only those communities who have been declared as such by the President through an initial public notification or through a subsequent amending Act of Parliament will be considered to be Scheduled Tribes.

The list of Scheduled Tribes is State/UT specific and a community declared as a Scheduled Tribe in a State need not be so in another State/UT. The essential characteristics, first laid down by the Lokur Committee, for a community to be identified as Scheduled Tribes are –

• indications of primitive traits

• distinctive culture;

• shyness of contact with the community at large;

• geographical isolation; and

• backwardness

The 1991 Census figures reveal that 42.02 percent of the Scheduled Tribes populations were main workers of whom 54.50 percent were cultivators and 32.69 per cent agricultural laborers. Thus, about 87 percent of the main workers from these communities were engaged in primary sector activities. The literacy rate of Scheduled Tribes is around 29.60 percent, as against the national average of 52 percent. More than three-quarters of Scheduled Tribes women are illiterate. These disparities are compounded by higher dropout rates in formal education resulting in disproportionately low representation in higher education. Not surprisingly, the cumulative effect has been that the proportion of Scheduled Tribes below the poverty line is substantially higher than the national average. The estimate of poverty made by Planning Commission for the year 1993-94 shows that 51.92 percent rural and 41.4 percent urban Scheduled Tribes were still living below the poverty line.

The Constitution of India incorporates several special provisions for the promotion of educational and economic interest of Scheduled Tribes and their protection from social injustice and all forms of exploitation. These objectives are sought to be achieved through a strategy known as the Tribal Sub-Plan strategy, which was adopted at the beginning of the Fifth Five Year Plan. The strategy seeks to ensure adequate flow of funds for tribal development form the State Plan allocations, schemes/programmes of Central Ministries/Departments, financial and Developmental Institutions. The cornerstone of this strategy has been to ensure earmarking of funds for TSP by States/UTs in proportion to the ST population in those State/UTs. Besides the efforts of the States/UTs and the Central Ministries/Departments to formulate and implement Tribal Sub-Plan for achieving socio-economic development of STs, the Ministry of Tribal Affairs is implementing several schemes and programs for the benefits of STs.

The progress over the years on the literacy front may be seen from the following :-

There are now 194 Integrated Tribal Development Projects (ITDPs) in the country, where the ST population is more than 50% of the total population of the blocks or groups of block. During the Sixth Plan, pockets outside ITDP areas, having a total population of 10,000 with at least 5,000 scheduled tribes were covered under the Tribal Sub-Plan under Modified Area Development Approach (MADA). So far 252 MADA pockets have been identified in the country. In addition, 79 clusters with a total population of 5,000 of which 50 per cent are schedule tribes have been identified.

In order to give more focused attention to the development of Scheduled Tribes, a separate Ministry, known as the Ministry of Tribal Affairs was constituted in October 1999. The new Ministry carved out of the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, is the nodal Ministry for overall policy, planning and coordination of programs and schemes for the development of Scheduled Tribes.

The mandate of the Ministry includes social security and social insurance with respect to the Scheduled Tribes, tribal welfare planning, project formulation research and training, promotion and development of voluntary efforts on tribal welfare and certain matters relating to administration of the Scheduled Areas. In regard to sector programs and development of these communities, the policy, planning, monitoring, evaluation as also their coordination is the responsibility of the concerned central Ministries/Departments, State Governments and UT Administrations. Each Central Ministry/Department will be the nodal Ministry of Department concerning its sector. Ministry of Tribal Affairs supports and supplements the efforts of State Governments/U.T. Administrations and the various Central Ministries/Departments for the holistic development of these communities.

Tribal development post independence

According to 199 1 census 67.76 % of persons belong to Scheduled Tribe (ST) in different States and Union Territories excluding Assam, Jammu and Kashmir. This constitutes 8.08% of the total population. The percentage of Scheduled Tribe population has marginally increased from 7. 83% in 1981 to 7.95% in 1991′ The Scheduled Tribe population has increased by 25.67% during the decade of 198 1 – 1991. The growth rate is high in comparison to the total population of the country (23.79%).2 this chapter gives an insight into the policies, plans and programmes for tribal development in India.

The tribals live mostly in the sparsely populated parts of hills and forests of sub -Himalayas and north east region, in the mountain belt of central India between Narmada and Godawari rivers, and southern parts of the Western Ghats extending from Wayanad to Kanyakumari. It is seen that there is a wide gap between the tribals and the non-tribals even today.

Pre-Independence and Post- Independence Approaches for Tribal Development

In a democratic state, one group of people should not remain outside the main stream society. Tribals have to be involved in all the matters concerning their country. After independence, Planned development started and broadly three different approaches were advanced

(1)Isolationist

(2)Assimilationist

(3) Integrationist.

‘O The first approach was a legacy of the British regime, and is usually described as ‘leave them untouched’. The policy was to isolate the tribal population from the masses. The British took deliberate efforts not to develop communication in the tribal areas. Tribals were kept away from the rest of the population. Verrier Elwin (1934) supported the establishment of a sort of ‘National park’ or ‘specimens in a human Zoo’ of the tribals and advised that their contact with the outside should be reduced to the minimum. But this approach was not followed for long.

Constitutional Provisions

(a) Statutory recognition of tribal communities.

(b) Creation of scheduled areas for the thorough development of the tribals.

(d) Special privileges in the form of reservation of a certain percentage of posts in government services and seats in educational institutions.

(e) Recognition of the right to use local language for administration and other purposes and to profess one’s faith.

The national committee on the development of backward areas under the chairmanship of Sri Sivaraman (Sivaraman committee ) has recommended the”Sub-plan approach” with suitable adaptation for other backward areas for the better planning and development Some committees were formed by governmentof India under the chairmanship of prominent politicians / government officials

A study team appointed by the Planning Commission headed by P. ShiluA.O. opined that “the aim of tribal welfare policy should be defined as the progressive advancement, social and economic betterment of tribal with a veto their integration with the rest of the community on a footing of equality within a reasonable distance of time.”‘)

The Debar commission (1961) stressed an integrated approach.According to them, “problem of economic development for the bulk of the tribals cannot be solved unless that resources of land, forests, cattle wealth, cottage and village industries are all mobilized in an integrated basis.”‘” In 1 972 under the chairmanship of S. C. Dube an Expert Committee set up for advising on the formulation of a new strategy during the Fifth Five Year Plan

The planning commission laid down the objectives and strategies for tribal development from time to time. The following are the account of the tribal welfare programs in India during the various plans.

The First Five Year Plan (1951-1956)

The First Five Year Plan outlined a positive policy for assisting the tribals as under: –

Assisting them to develop their natural resources and to evoke a productive economic life wherein they will enjoy the fruits of their own labour and will not be exploited by more organized economic forces from outside;
It is not desirable to bring about changes in their religions and social life, except at the initiative of the tribal people themselves and with their willing consent;
It is accepted that there are many features in tribal life which should not only be retained but also developed; and
The qualities of their dialects, and the rich content of their arts and crafts also need to be appreciated and preserved.

Taking into consideration the conditions of the tribal people, The First Planning Commission quoted that “There may be a good deal of justification for such (isolation) a policy of non-interference; but it is not easily practicable when tribal life has been influenced by social forces from without, and tribal communities have reached a certain degree of acculturization accompanied by the penetration of communications in the tribal areas, and of social services for the betterment of their lives.”

In the First Five Year Plan, Community Development Projects for all round development of rural areas especially the weaker sections were started.

Second Five Year plan (1 956 -1 961)

During this plan the Ministry of Home Affairs provided fund to the Ministry of Community Development to establish Special Multi-purpose Tribal Blocks (SMPT) in areas with prominent tribal population.

Third Five Year plan (1961 -1966)

Towards the end of the second plan, i.e., in 1959, the government of India appointed a committee under the chairmanship of Verrier Elwin to review the SMPT Blocks. According to the recommendations of this committee, during the Third Plan period, SMPT Blocks were renamed as Tribal Development Blocks (TDB) and suggested it to be opened in all areas where over 60% of the population were tribals. In addition to the normal allotment of Rs 12 lakhs to a community development block, a provision of Rs 10 lakhs for 1″ stage, and Rs. 5 lakhs for 2 “stage for TDB was also made.

Fourth Five Year Plan (1969- 1974)

During the Fourth Five Year Plan, a series of programs were conceived and addressed to specific target groups. The Small Farmers Development Agencies (SFDA) and Marginal Farmers and Agricultural Laborers Development Agencies (MFAL) were the first two in the series. In these cases, attention was shifted from area development to development of identified individuals who qualified for special attention according to certain objective criteria.

The Drought Prone Area Program (DPAP) was another measure in the same direction but with a difference. Here the attention is given to the problem faced by an entire region which is depressed because of its agro-climatic situation. The specific target-group approach, however, was adopted to cater attention on the weaker sections of the society. In the wake of establishment of these area specific and weaker-group oriented projects, the program for tribal areas were also on a pilot basis. Tribal Development Agencies (TDA’s)

were established on the pattern of SFDA which addressed themselves to theproblems of the tribal population. The level of investment in the new program was much higher compared to TD Block. Six tribal development agencies were started during the Fourth Plan. Each Tribal Development Agency covered a group of TD Blocks. Tribal. Development Agencies were expected to comprise elements of economic development, social services and prospective measures.

Fifth Five Year Plan (19 74 – 79)

During the middle of the Fourth Five Year Plan, i.e., in the year 1972, the Planning Commission set up a “Task force on Development of Tribal Areas” with L.P. Vidyarthi as the Chairman. In their appraisal, the task force observed that in spite of various kinds of investment by the State and Central governments for tribal development in successive plans, the problem of the tribals reflected in primitive methods of agriculture, land alienation, indebtedness, adverse effects of industrialization, low rate of literacy, poor health of nutrition etc., had not been solved. The committee opined that one of the important factors for the lack of impact so far was that development of Scheduled Tribes and tribal areas had been looked upon as a problem of ‘welfare’ as distinguished from ‘development’.

Taking into account of the recommendations of the task force and other previous committees, during the Fifth Five Year Plan, an altogether new approach was adopted towards tribal development. This was termed as Tribal Sub-plan. It envisaged the total development of the tribal areas and provided the mechanism for integrating the developmental activities of the government and the semi government organizations by financing through the Integrated Tribal Development Project (ITDP). The Sub-Plan aimed at narrowing the gap between the levels of development of tribal and other areas, and to improve the quality of life of the tribal communities in general.

Sixth Five Year Plan (1980 -85)

The Sixth Plan continued the Sub-Plan approach of the Fifth Plan. This was to be supplemented by target beneficiary approach with the objective of narrowing the gap between the level of development of the tribals and other developed communities and bringing about a qualitative change in the life of a tribal community.

The broad objectives of the Sixth Plan were:

i) A progressive reduction in the incidents of poverty and unemployment.

ii) Improving the quality of life through minimum needs program.

iii) A reduction in inequalities of income and wealth.

iv) Infra structure development for further exploitation of potential of the tribal region. Seventh Five Year Plan (1 985 -90)

The basic premises of the Tribal Sub-Plan continued in the Seventh Plan also. During the Seventh Plan, the Tribal Sub-Plan strategy comprised the following.

(a) Identification of the Development Blocks where tribal population is in majority and their constitution into ITDPs with a view to adopt there an integrated and project – based approach for development.

(b) Marking of funds for the Tribal Sub-Plan and ensuring the flow of funds from the control of State plan, sector outlays and from financial institutions. I

Eighth Five Year Plan (1992 -97)

(a) Progressive reduction in poverty and creation of employment thereby providing reduction in income inequalities.

(b) Improving the quality of life through a minimum needs program.

(d) Development of confidence of tribals along the desired lines through intensive educational efforts.

Ninth Five Year PIan (1997-2002)

A participatory planning process is an essential precondition for ensuring equity as well as accelerating the rate of growth ofthe economy. For approaching to this goal, the government of India enacted an amendment to the constitution of India (73rd Amendment) for ensuring representation of backward and marginalised communities eg. Scheduled Caste, Scheduled Tribe and women in Panchayati Raj institutions. The draft report of the working group on decentralized planning and Panchayati Raj for formulation of the Nineth FiveYear Plan (1997-2002) noted that ” … large parts of the country and vast section of the population have been untouched by this progress. It is now felt that the fruits of development could have been multiplied manifold with the involvement of people at the grass-root level in the process of de-clo-rnent.” ~The approach for the Ninth Five Year Plan has drawn attention to the need for national policy for tribal development. Effects will be made to ensure that the tribal economy is protected and supported against threats from the external markets. The ownerships/patent rights of the tribal people in respect of minor forest produces vis a vis the use of medicinal plants will be protected as per the provision of Intellectual Property Rights (IPR). Ninth Plan is a process and it would be able to fulfill the ambition of tribals is the initiation of 21″century and may able to bring them more nearer to national mainstream.

Schemes for Tribal Development

The tribal majority areas in the country are broadly divided into three

categories, viz.,

(i) predominantly tribal stated union territories

(ii) Scheduled area,

(iii) Non-Scheduled areas in the states.

All the tribal-majority States and Union Territories are placed in a special category for availing funds. The development and administration of tribal areas is accepted as a special responsibility of the central government even though they are integral parts of the concerned states. Financial provisions for their development were considered in detail by the constituent assembly itself.

The schemes have been divided into two categories, viz.,

(i) Central sector programs which are fully financed by the central government.

(ii) The centrally sponsored programs which are partly financed by the central government, and rest of the expenditure meted out by the concerned State

Government . According to Dr. B.D. Sharma, financial resources for developmental programs in a state may comprise the following elements.*’

i) investment in the central and centrally sponsored schemes;

ii) state revenues;

iii) share from certain central revenue;

iv) plan assistance from the central government and

v) grants under Article 275 (1) on the basis of the recommendations of the Finance Commission.

The utilization of State funds is broadly classified under two categories. Plan and non-plan. The plan technically covers all those items which are included in the State or the Central plan. The non-plan includes expenditure on general administration as also on the maintenance of development schemes.

The Special Central Assistance (SCA) for tribal sub-plans is allocatedbetween different states on the basis of three criteria as under.

i) the tribal population of Sub-Plan area;

ii) the geographical area of the Sub-Plan;

iii) the per capita gross output of the state.

Programmes for Tribal Welfare

A number of employment oriented and developmental programs for tribals have been introduced by the government of India. The major programs are:

1. Integrated Rural Development Program ( IRDP)

IRDP scheme is absolutely for rural people those belong to below poverty line and others are for both rural as well as urban youth.

2. Jawahar Rosgar Yojana (JRY)

3. Prime Ministers Rozgar Yojana( PMRY)

PMRY was initiated in October 1993 to tackle the burning problem of educated unemployment.

PMRY relates to setting up of self employment ventures through industries and services.

4. Training For Self Employment For Rural youth (TRYSEM).

The scheme of TRYSEM was introduced in the year 1979 on the Independence day. The scheme works as a part of Integrated Rural Development Program and aims at imparting training to about 2 lakhs rural youths every year from the 5,011 development blocks of the country and to lift them above the poverty line.

All these schemes are implemented in the state by District Rural Development Agencies (DRDA’s) in collaboration with Commercial and Cooperative Banks.

Any unemployed youth who is metric failed/passed or above or IT1 passed, is eligible for the benefits of the scheme subject to the condition that if he is between the age group of 18 to35 years and his family income does not exceed Rs 24,000 per annummzT3 he youth should also be the permanent resident of the areas for at least three years and he should not be defaulter to any bank or financial institution. The scheme envisages 22.5% reservation for Scheduled Caste Scheduled Tribe and 27% for OBC. A maximum loan of Rs 1 lakh per candidate is provided under this scheme, at an interest rate of 12.5% to 15.5%. The entrepreneur has to contribute5% of project cost as margin money. No collateral security guarantee is asked on such loans. Period of repayment starts after a moratorium of six to eighteen months and range over 3 to 7 years. The government provides subsidy to the extent of 15% of the total loan impursed with a ceiling of Rs 7,500 per entrepreneur. In case of joint venture each partner may be provided a loan of Rs1 lakh subsidy. In such cases the interest is calculated for each partner separately at a rate of 15% of his share in the project cost limited to Rs 7,500 for each partner. The provision of compulsory training to entrepreneurship development is a salient feature of the scheme. Duration of this training is one month and trainees are provided stipend of Rs. .500 during the training period. With the objective of providing technical skills to rural youth to enable them to take up self employment in the fields of agriculture and allied activities, industries, services and business activities

Under this scheme, those rural youth who are in the age group of 18 to 35years with annual timely income from all sources are not exceeding Rs 8,5001-are eligible for selection. Preference is given to Scheduled Caste scheduled Tribe (50%) women (40%) and physically handicapped (3%). The selected beneficiaries are trained into the field of agriculture and allied activities, industry, service and business activities. The trainees are paid a monthly stipend or daily allowance during the training period. The training institution is provided honorarium along with Rs 75 per trainee per month for purchase of raw materials After completion of training, the beneficiaries are assisted in getting finance from the banks. A maximum of Rs 35,000 1- can be sanctioned to each beneficiary as a composite loan. Trained youths are granted a subsidy by the government at the rate of l/3 to !A of the cost of the project to set up self-employment venture. Beneficiaries are also provided marketing support for their finished products. The amount spent on this scheme is contributed by the Central and the State governments in 50:50 ratios. Since 1983 the scope of TRYSEM scheme has been enlarged.

The main thrust of the development strategies during the recent past has been on the removal of poverty in tribal areas. The main causes of poverty are identified as illiteracy, unemployment, under employment and law productivity in agriculture. Since farmers in TSP area have land holding mostly on hill slopes, the fertility of land is very low. Further, droughts and soil erosion are low recurring features in the tribal areas. This has reduced employment opportunities of the tribals. For improving the economic status of tribals, special programs were launched, during 1980’s, mainly

(a) The Asset Program

The Asset Program aims at the over all integrated development of rural life through the removal of poverty and unemployment in rural areas. In this program productive assets are directly given to the poor. It is believed that income generated from these productive assets would not only be sufficient to repay the bank loans but will help the assisted families to cross the ‘poverty line’. This program is popularly known as Integrated Rural Development Program (IRDP).

(b) The Employment Program

The Employment Program on the other hand aims at providing employment through public works during the adverse agricultural season. The employment program asserts that poverty persists because of the lack of employment opportunities. The earlier employment schemes were adhoc in nature but the employment program launched from Oct 1 980, popularly known as National Rural Employment Program (NREP) is considered as a permanent plan program. The travails of tribal development need to be understood properly. The programs should be related to the specific needs of the tribal community Also, tribal development programs should be integrated with the ongoing rural development programs meant for poverty alleviation. A pragmatic and holistic approach to tribal development alone can produce good results.

Tribal development in South Asia links economics with the politics of recognition, and can co-opt preservation and heritage movements or campaigns for affirmative action or reservations. This collection of thirteen essays, carefully edited and introduced by Govinda Chandra Rath, adds to this often heated debate.

The 83 million tribal peoples of India make up 8 per cent of the country’s total population, and belong to 461 officially recognized groups. Divided into four sections, this volume deals with the various approaches to tribal development since Indian independence, in particular: the crises of the welfare state; tribal autonomy movements which have emerged in reaction to centralized planning models; land alienation among tribal communities; and social opportunities and policy successes in tribal affairs. In his introduction, Rath concludes that „the mainstream development model has limited impact on the people living at the periphery, specifically on tribes‟ a failure all the more tragic given that it is precisely these marginalized citizens who have been the target of elaborate tribal welfare programs.

Sarkar’s contribution on the Rajbhanshis of north Bengal illustrates how their isolation from the development process coupled with their peripheral social status has driven them towards a movement for political autonomy. In this paper, in common with others in the volume, there exists a sense that tribalism is in some form antithetical to the development agenda. In a similar vein, Shankar’s article is a narrative on post-independence transformation among the Kol tribe of Uttar Pradesh, culminating in their eventual alienation from forest land. Shankar is avowedly interventionist: ‘[I]f the government can set apart even 1% of its budget every year towards the acquisition of good quality land for tribals, it would invariably help in bringing about a qualitative improvement’

In their paper on tribal movements in Kerala, Chathukulum and John suggest that agricultural settlers have been the direct beneficiaries of alienated land. The solution, they argue, is that tribal development must ‘proceed in a manner befitting the ethos of the people in an environment in which their development becomes their own responsibility’ Kumar’s contribution on tribal land alienation in Andhra Pradesh reveals how the migration of plains-dwelling non-tribal men to tribal areas has changed the structure of land relations. Saravanan discusses the tribal economy of Tamil Nadu from 1947 to 2000 and shows how the position of tribes as cultivators has over time been downgraded to that of agricultural laborers.

The present scenario of tribal developmental programs.

The tribal situation in the country presents a varied picture. Some areas have high Tribal concentration while in other areas , the tribals form only a small portion of the total population. There are some tribal groups, which are still at the food gathering stage, some others practice shifting cultivation, yet other may be pursuing primitive forms of agriculture.

The Constitution of India provides for a comprehensive framework for the socio-economic development of Scheduled Tribes and for preventing their exploitation by other groups of society. A detailed and comprehensive review of the tribal problem was taken on the eve of the Fifth Five Year Plan and the Tribal sub-Plan strategy took note of the fact that an integrated approach to the tribal problems was necessary in terms of their geographic and demographic concentra- tion –

If a faster development of this community is to take place. Accordingly, the tribal areas in the country were classified under three broad categories:

States and Union Territories having a majority scheduled tribes population.
States and Union Territories having substantial tribal population but majority tribal particular administrative units, such as block and tehsil .

population in

States and Union Territories having dispersed tribal population.
In the light of the above approach, it was decided that tribal majority States like Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland and U.Ts. of Lakshadweep and Dadra & Nagar Haveli may not need a Tribal sub-Plan, as the entire plan of these States/Union Territories was primarily meant for the S.T. population constituting the majority. For the second category of States and Union Territories, tribal sub-Plan approach was adopted after delineating areas of tribal concentration. A similar approach was also adopted in case of States and Union Territories having dispersed tribal population by paying special attention to pockets of tribal concentrations, keeping in view their tenor of dispersal. To look after the tribal population coming within the new tribal sub-Plan strategy in a coordinated manner, Integrated Tribal Development Projects are conceived during Fifth Five Year Plan and these have been continued since them. During the Sixth Plan, Modified Area Development Approach (MADA) was adopted to cover smaller areas of tribal concentration and during the Seventh Plan, the TSP strategy was extended further to cover even more smaller areas of tribal concentration and thus cluster of tribal concentration were identified.

At the time of delineation of project areas under the Tribal sub-Plan strategy, it was observed that the ITDPs/ITDAs are not co-terminus. Areas declared under Fifth Schedule of the Constitution. The Scheduled Areas as per the Constitutional orders have been declared in eight States viz A.P., Bihar, Gujarat, H.P., Maharashtra, M.P., Orissa and Rajasthan, As per the provisions contained in the Fifth Schedule of the Constitution, various enactment in the forms of Acts and Regulations have been promulgated in the above states for the welfare of scheduled tribes and their protection from exploitation

Since TSP strategy also has twin objectives namely Socio-economic development of Schedule tribes and protection of tribal against exploitation, the Govt. of India in Aug., 1976 had decided to make the boundaries of Scheduled Areas co-terminus with TSP areas (ITDP/ITDA only) so that the protective measure available to Sch. Tribes in Sch. Areas could be uniformly applied to TSP areas for effective implementation of the development programs in these areas. Accordingly, the TSP areas have been made co-terminus with Sch. Areas in the State of Bihar, Gujarat, H.P., Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Orissa and Rajasthan. The State of A.P. where the TSP areas are not co-terminus with sch. Areas has also furnished a proposal to this effect which is under examination.

Some of the newly introduced Schemes are :-

Equity support to NSTFDC/STFDC Scheme for Release of Equity Support to the National/ State Scheduled Tribes Finance and Development Corporations (STFDCs) is a continuing centrally sponsored scheme under which Central Government provides equity support to National Scheduled Tribes Finance and Development Corporation (NSTFDC) under the Ministry of Tribal Affairs and State Scheduled Tribes Finance and Development Corporations (STFDCs) of various State Governments. STFDCs catering to STs in various states are provided assistance towards their Share Capital under the centrally sponsored scheme. The ratio of Share Capital contribution between the Central and States Governments is of 49: 51.

The National Scheduled Tribes Finance and Development Corporation (NSTFDC) was incorporated in April, 2001 as a Government of India company under Ministry of Tribal Affairs. This Corporation has been granted license under Section 25 of the Companies Act, 1956 (A company not for profit). NSTFDC is an apex organization for economic upliftment of Scheduled Tribes and the Corporation fulfils its objectives by providing financial assistance at concessional rate of interest varying between 4% to 8% p.a. payable by the beneficiaries. The financial assistance of the Corporation is extended to Scheduled Tribes having annual family income upto double the poverty line (DPL) through State Channelising Agencies (SCAs) nominated by respective State Governments in addition to certain Regional Rural Banks and PSU Banks.

Financial assistance of the Corporation is provided for all kinds of viable income generating activity.

Some of the schemes sanctioned by NSTFDC are as under:

i) Dairy, Poultry, Pumpset / Minor Irrigation, Goatery, Piggery, Horticulture etc. in the Agricultural Sector.

ii) Bamboo Furniture Making unit, Flour/ Rice Mill Unit, Steel Fabrication, Gem Stone Cutting and Polishing Unit etc under the Industrial Sector.

iii) Automobile Workshop, Book Binding, Data Processing, Tent Hose etc under the Service Sector.

iv) Auto Rickshaw, Goods Carrier etc under the Transport Sector.

Scheme of Strengthening Education among Scheduled Tribe (ST) Girls in Low Literacy Districts (w.e.f. 1st April, 2008)

1. OBJECTIVE

The scheme aims to bridge the gap in literacy levels between the general female population and tribal women, through facilitating 100% enrolment of tribal girls in the identified Districts or Blocks, more particularly in naxal affected areas and in areas inhabited by Primitive Tribal Groups (PTGs), and reducing drop-outs at the elementary level by creating the required ambience for education. Improvement of the literacy rate of tribal girls is essential to enable them to participate effectively in and benefit from, socio-economic development.

(i) Promote 100% enrollment of scheduled tribe girls in the identified districts, blocks or pockets (for Primitive Tribal Groups), vis-à-vis present level of enrolment, class-wise, for all schools taken together.

(ii) Reduce dropouts at the primary and middle school levels

(iii) Monitor the running of the hostels/complexes.

(iv) Make payments, grant of awards, etc., as may be prescribed by the Ministry.

(v) Arrange regular interaction between girls and ANMs to promote preventive health education and establish curative linkages of these hostels/complexes with health institutions.

(vi) Promote awareness among parents towards the importance of girls‟education.

(vii) Tie up with potential recruiters so that immediately on passing, the student can get a job or can go in for self-employment.

CENTRALLY SPONSORED SCHEME OF HOSTELS FOR SCHEDULED TRIBE GIRLS AND BOYS

Article 16 of the Constitution enables the Central government to make special provisions for the socio-economic development of the deprived sections of the society to enable them to share the facilities at par with the rest of the society. Education is the foundation for any kind of socio-economic development. Education of Scheduled Tribes assumes added importance in the sense that it elevates their social status and equips them with the acumen to take advantage of the emerging opportunities both in employment and other economic activities.

EDU:Upgradation of Merit of ST Students

The objective of the scheme is to upgrade the merit of ST students by providing them remedial and special coaching in classes IX to XII. While remedial coaching aims at removing deficiencies in various subjects, special coaching is provided with a view to prepare the students for competitive examinations for seeking entry into professional courses like Engineering and Medical disciplines. The scheme was revised from time to time. The last revisions in the Scheme were made during 2008-09.

Salient features:

The State Government/UT Administration selects certain schools in different Districts/towns with hostel facilities which show excellence in performance of students from class IX to XII.
The Ministry fixes the total number of awards for each State annually.
Coaching starts from class IX in the identified schools and continues till the awardees complete class XII.
Coaching is provided in languages, science, mathematics as well as special coaching for admission to professional courses like engineering and medicine.
While selecting the ST students the aim is to include at least 30% girl students and 3% disabled students.
The scheme provides for 100% central assistance to the States/UT’s.

Benefits:

A package grant of Rs. 19,500/- per students per year comprising the following:
Rs. 11,500/- per students per year as under: Boarding & lodging chargesRs. 7,000/-@ Rs. 700/- Per month for 10 months

Pocket Money @ Rs. 200/- for 10 months	Rs. 2,000/-
Books and Stationery	Rs. 2,500/-

Rs. 8,000/- per year per student for honorarium to Principal, Experts and other incidental charges.
Besides the amount of scholarship, students with disabilities are also eligible for the additional grants provided in the Scheme.

EDU:Rajiv Gandhi National Fellowship for ST Students

This is a Central Scheme to providing fellowship to Scheduled Tribe students for pursuing higher studies such as M.Phil and Ph.D. The scheme was introduced in the year 2005-06.

Salient features:

UGC is a nodal agency for implementation of the Scheme.

It supports ST students in their higher studies such as M.Phil and Ph.D in all the Universities/Institutions recognized by the UGC.
The fellowship is on the pattern of UGC fellowship awarded to regular full time research students in M.Phil and Ph.D courses.
The total number of fresh fellowships each year is 667.
In case, number of candidates exceed number of awards, UGC select the candidates based on percentage of marks obtained by the candidates in Post Graduation examination.
The distribution of fellowships amongst different States/UTs would primarily be in the proportion of ST population in the respective States/UTs.
UGC may divert slots from a particular State if eligible candidate are not available in that States.
Scholarship amount is disbursed to the candidates by the UGC through Bank Smart Cards.
Amount of Scholarship covers fellowships, contingency expenses, expenses for departmental assistance, escorts/reader assistance for disable candidates and HRA on UGC pattern.
100% funding is provided by the Ministry of Tribal Affairs on the basis of the norms.
Average cost of fellowship is Rs. 2.16 lakh for Junior Research Fellow (JRF) and Rs. 2.40 lakh Senior Research Fellow (SRF).

Special Central Assistance to Tribal Sub Plan

The Special Central Assistance (SCA) is provided by the Ministry of tribal Affairs to the State Government as an additive to the State TSP. SCA is Primarily meant for family-oriented incomegeneration schemes in sectors of agriculture, horticulture, sericulture and animal husbandry cooperation. A part of SCA (not more than 30%) is also permitted to be used for development of infrastructure incidental to such income generating schemes.

Scheme of “Market Development of Tribal Products/ Produce”

The Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India Limited (TRIFED) was established in August 1987 by the then Ministry of Welfare, Government ofIndia , under the Multi State Cooperative Societies Act 1984 (which has now been replaced by the Multi-State Cooperative Societies Act, 2002) .

TRIFED was established with the basic mandate of bringing about the socio-economic development of tribals of the country by institutionalizing the trade of Minor Forest Produce (MFP) and Surplus Agriculture Produce (SAP) collected/cultivated by them

– because tribals are heavily dependent on these natural products for their livelihood. But in many cases they did not use to get remunerative prices due to middle-men and unscrupulous traders exploiting the naiveté of TribalS.

TRIFED was expected to help tribals by ensuring purchase of their products and that too by paying them remunerative prices. Further TRIFED was required to provide marketing support to State Tribal Development Cooperative Corporations, State Forest Development Corporations and other State level Agencies engaged in procurement of such products from tribals.

Since inception, TRIFED focused its activities mainly on procurement of Minor Forest Produce (MFP) and Agriculture Produce (AP) with the idea of providing remunerative prices to the tribals and also to help member societies in disposing their stocks procured from tribals.

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