SCSP and TSP

Scheduled Caste Sub-Plan and Tribal Sub-Plan

Clearly, it would be neither feasible nor necessary for all ministries to meet the 16 / 8 per cent benchmark for SCSP /TSP. But if the ministries make serious efforts along these lines, the combined Plan allocations reported for all ministries is quite likely to be higher than the benchmarks - if not in the first year itself, then over a span of a few years

 

Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) have been among the most disadvantaged sections of our society due to their socio-economic exploitation and isolation over a long period of time. They lag behind the rest of the population in terms of both human development as well as economic indicators. Table 1 reflects the marked difference in the social and economic indicators of SCs and STs as compared to other social groups. The 12th Five Year Plan noted that the incidence of poverty is most pronounced among the SCs and the STs across all social groups.  

Table 1: Socio-Economic Indicators for Scheduled Castes

Indicators	Year	SCs	STs	Other Groups
Literacy Rate (Rural) %	2007-08	60.5	58.8	76.9
Literacy Rate (Urban) %		74.9	78	89.9
Unemployment Rate by Current Daily Status (Rural)	2007-08	11.9	7.5	8.4
Women with BMI < 18.5 (%)	2005-06	41.2	46.6	29.3
Women with Anaemia (%)	2005-06	58.3	68.5	51.2
Infant Mortality Rate (per 1000)	2005-06	66.4	62.1	48.9
Households with Pucca houses (%)	2008-09	38.3	39.5	66.1
Households with electricity (%)	2009-10	61.2	18.8	75

 

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TRIBAL DEVELOPMENT-Law, Democracy and Governance

TRIBAL DEVELOPMENT : The Limits to Law, Democracy and Governance

Tribal Development Both PESA and FRA give powers to communities that allow them to determine their future destiny. What these laws also do is to make the state bureaucracy and for that matter elected, mostly non-tribal, representatives accountable to community institutions. The centre of power will, therefore, shift and allow tribals control over their own governance and natural resources that they are dependent upon for their livelihood. PESA and FRA can create a legitimate political space and democratic mechanism where equity, justice and participatory democracy are the core 

Tribal Development policy from its inception has always been beset by a contradiction, namely to recognize the uniqueness of tribal communities (including their governance systems) but yet deliver the benefits of mainstream development. In practice, the former has, for the most part been undermined, seemingly to attain the latter. However, even the latter goal mostly has not been achieved because of the wider priorities of ‘growth’ and ‘development’ for the nation. Over the last two decades since the adoption of the New Economic Policy in 1991 and the drive to speed up the growth process, a widening gap between the goals of national development and tribal development has emerged. The accelerated attempt to exploit natural resources in the name of economic growth has led to maladministration and misgovernance (‘governance deficit’) and neglect in terms of infrastructure, development and welfare (‘development deficit’) in tribal areas. These failures of state policy have led to the spread of Left Wing Extremism (LWE), pervasive now in 83 districts of the country.  

This is not to say that progressive Constitutional provisions and laws that empower tribal communities have not been periodically passed, but rather that, these have been for the most part undermined. From Article 244 of the Constitution, which led to the establishment of Fifth Schedule Areas, to legislation such as the Panchayati Raj (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996 (hereafter PESA), and the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006 (hereafter FRA), legal measures have been passed to empower tribal communities to govern themselves. But invariably these legal measures have to a large extent remained on paper because of a lack of political will to implement them, given the economic priorities of growth. 

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SABLA for Adolescence Girl

Sabla: The road to empowerment and self esteem for adolescent girls

 

Through various schemes including Sabla, the government is investing in the health, nutrition and development needs of adolescent girls to advance their rights to education, health and protection. This will help them to build a future of gender equality and justice

 

Adolescence is a phase during which major physical and psychological changes take place in children, along with changes in their social perceptions and expectations. Adolescence is also the stage when young people extend their relationships beyond parents and family and are intensely influenced by their peers and the outside world. This is the time that they need the maximum understanding and caring. 

There are nearly 1.2 billion adolescents in the world, that is, those aged between 10 to 19 years. 

Studies show that millions of adolescents today do not enjoy access to quality education, basic sexual and reproductive health care, support for mental health issues and disability, protection from violence, abuse and exploitation and forums for active participation. 

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