Centre allocates ₹79,000 cr for tribal housing, infra, health: Jual Oram

Union Minister for Tribal Affairs Jual Oram said on Thursday that the Centre has set aside ₹79,000 crore to provide houses, roads, health facilities and water to tribal areas across the country.

Participating in an awareness programme under the Dharti Aaba Janabhagidari Abhiyan at Sanguem in South Goa, he said that the earlier Congress government never recognised that the problems faced by the tribal communities could be different from the other sections of society.

Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant, Assembly Speaker Ramesh Tawadkar and State Social Welfare Minister Subhash Phal Desai also attended the event.

It was only after the BJP came to power (in 2014) that a separate ministry was created for tribal welfare with a sizable budget, said the 64-year-old tribal leader from Odisha.

He said that the initial budget for the ministry was ₹8,000 crore.

Sometimes, I have sleepless nights. We have a huge budget of ₹79,000 crore. This budget has to be utilised by the state governments for the welfare of tribal communities in their respective states, he said.

The Dharti Aaba Janjatiya Gram Utkarsh Abhiyan (also referred to as Pradhan Mantri Dharati Aaba Abhiyan) was launched on October 2, 2024, marking the 150th birth anniveary of tribal freedom fighter Bi₹a Munda. It aims to comprehensively uplift tribal villages across India.

The minister said that the scheme has been allocated the funds, covering 17 ministries that will work together to develop tribal villages. PM Awas Yojana (for homes) would be fully saturated, while a rural road network of 25,000 km will be constructed. Every tribal village will be connected with tap water under the Nal Se Jal' programme, he said.

Oram said that network connectivity and mobile medical units will be launched in tribal villages. These units will also have the equipment to detect cancer and other diseases. These mobile medical units will be parked at weekly markets where they will screen people, he said.

Under the central scheme, he said, funds can be allotted to state tribal corporations and tribal finance corporations that can provide scholarships to tribal students and expedite cases concerning the Forest Rights Act.

He congratulated CM Sawant for retaining the tribal welfare ministry with him. Usually, a CM does not keep the tribal welfare ministry, said the Union minister. This shows how much he is concerned for the tribals, he said.

CM Sawant said it is in the BJP's DNA to work for the welfare of tribals. He said that though he has no blood relations with the tribals, he has an emotional and social bond with the community.

Sawant said that the state government has worked towards the welfare of tribals over the past three yea₹. He said a Tribal Research Centre has been established to understand the problems of this community.

They will study health-related issues and also understand the tribal culture, he said.

Sawant said that the state is working towards establishing a tribal museum.

The tribal Kunbi saree is being promoted by my government, and I'm proud of it, he said. A Kunbi village will be set up at Sanguem at a cost of ₹10 crore in the next three months, he added.