Guj scheme model for Centre's new programme for tribals

Replicating a tribal welfare scheme first launched in Gujarat, the Centre today rolled out the 'Vanbandhu Kalyan Yojana' in one block each of 10 tribal- dominated states with the aim of bridging the gap between tribals and other sections in human development indices.
Launched on a pilot basis, Union Tribal Welfare Minister Jual Oram said the scheme will be first implemented in one block each in the states of Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Telangana, Odisha, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, Maharashtra and Gujarat.
Under it, the Centre will provide Rs 10 crore for each block for the development of various facilities for tribals.

"The scheme mainly focuses on bridging infrastructural gaps and the gap in human development indices between Scheduled Tribes and other social groups," Oram said at a conference here of the ministers of tribal affairs of the various states and Union Territories.
Initially, those blocks will be targeted where at least 33 per cent of the population is tribal.
He also said that in-principle approval has been given for recognising Visva Bharati University, Shanti Niketan, as a centre of excellence in the filed of tribal language and literature.

Oram said that the government has taken up initiatives for the strengthening of existing institutions which are meant for the delivery of goods and services to tribals.

He said that specific funds allocated to state governments for this purpose should be utilised judiciously with a view to making the institutional mechanism more robust through a strengthening of such institutions.
Noting that the price of minor forest produce (MFP) is more often than not determined by the traders instead of the play of demand and supply, Oram said they have implemented a scheme to ensure that forest dwellers are not deprived of their due.
He also said that a proposal to establish a National Research Centre at the Tribal Research Institute at Bhubaneswar to promote studies, among others, for the socio- economic development of tribals has also been approved.