Skip to main content

Union budget: Dalits, tribals "denied" 57% per cent of their share

 
In one the sharpest critiques of the new Union budget, a top apex body of India’s Dalit organizations, National Campaign for Dalit Human Rights (NCDHR), has accused the Government of India of denying Dalits 61 percent of the share they should have been allocated under the scheduled caste sub-plan (SCSP), 53 per cent of the share tribals should have been allocated under the scheduled tribe sub-plan (TSP).
Pointing out that the total denial to both SCs and STs is a “shocking” 57 per cent, Paul Divakar, who is NCDHR’s general secretary, has said, “Prime Minister Narendra Modi had promised to whip the budget into shape and make the economy fairer for Dalits, tribals and other marginalized sections, but unfortunately his words have not translated into action.”
Giving details, the NCDHR has said, in the budget for 2015-16, the Dalits have been allocated Rs 30,850 crore, while the allocation is Rs 19,980 crore for Adivasis. “As per the SCSP/TSP Guidelines, the SCs should be allocated 16.6 per cent of the outlay, which amounts to Rs 77,236 crore towards SCSP, and the STs should be allocated 8.6 per cent of the outlay, which amounts to Rs 40,014 crore towards TSP”, it added.
“Dalits, therefore, have been denied a total of 61 per cent of the due amount under the SCSP, and 53 per cent has been denied to tribals under TSP”, it said, adding, “When compared to 2014-15 allocations , SCSP allocation was Rs 43,208 crore and TSP allocation was Rs 26,714 crore.” It terms this year’s allocation as “anti-SC and anti-ST.”
The NCDHR further says, “From the gender perspective, the Budget spells doom for SC/ST women”, as it earmarks practically “nothing” for them. “Out of the total allocation of Rs 30,850 crore under the SCSP, the allocation for women specific schemes is a meager sum of Rs 73.70 crore – which amounts to 0.23 per cent only!” it adds, “The scenario is much the same when one looks at the Budget allocation under TSP -- a paltry sum of Rs 40 crore ie 0.20 per cent.”
According to NCDHR , the allocations have “also declined in the education sector” to Rs 10,194.7 crore under the SCSP and Rs 5486.44 crore under TSP. Further, “allocation in the critical post-matric scholarship scheme for SC/STs has been reduced from Rs 1,904.78 crore to Rs 1,599 crore.”
Saying that the Modi government has actually “missed the boat to reach out to the Dalits and Adivasis”, the NCDHR concludes, “hough this Budget could have been used to give real relief to struggling families facing assaults, atrocities, discrimination, poor health, lack of education and unemployment, no concrete measure has been taken to improve their condition.”
“It is not only ironic but a cruel stroke that the government, instead of protecting SCs and STs and promoting their development has grossly reduced spending on their welfare”, the NCDHR statement said, wondering, “Where is the money going? The answer is not far to seek – it is going to the corporates with a reduction in corporate tax from 30 per cent to 25 per cent.”

Comments

TRENDING

Dalit rights and political tensions: Why is Mevani at odds with Congress leadership?

While I have known Jignesh Mevani, one of the dozen-odd Congress MLAs from Gujarat, ever since my Gandhinagar days—when he was a young activist aligned with well-known human rights lawyer Mukul Sinha’s organisation, Jan Sangharsh Manch—he became famous following the July 2016 Una Dalit atrocity, in which seven members of a family were brutally assaulted by self-proclaimed cow vigilantes while skinning a dead cow, a traditional occupation among Dalits.  

Global NGO slams India for media clampdown during conflict, downplays Pakistan

A global civil rights group, Civicus has taken strong exception to how critical commentaries during the “recent conflict” with Pakistan were censored in India, with journalists getting “targeted”. I have no quarrel with the Civicus view, as the facts mentioned in it are all true.

Whither SCOPE? Twelve years on, Gujarat’s official English remains frozen in time

While writing my previous blog on how and why Narendra Modi went out of his way to promote English when he was Gujarat chief minister — despite opposition from people in the Sangh Parivar — I came across an interesting write-up by Aakar Patel, a well-known name among journalists and civil society circles.

Remembering Vijay Rupani: A quiet BJP leader who listened beyond party lines

Late evening on June 12, a senior sociologist of Indian origin, who lives in Vienna, asked me a pointed question: Of the 241 persons who died as a result of the devastating plane crash in Ahmedabad the other day, did I know anyone? I had no hesitation in telling her: former Gujarat chief minister Vijay Rupani, whom I described to her as "one of the more sensible persons in the BJP leadership."

Why India’s renewable energy sector struggles under 2,735 compliance hurdles

Recently, during a conversation with an industry representative, I was told how easy it is to set up a startup in Singapore compared to India. This gentleman, who had recently visited Singapore, explained that one of the key reasons Indians living in the Southeast Asian nation prefer establishing startups there is because the government is “extremely supportive” when it comes to obtaining clearances. “They don’t want to shift operations to India due to the large number of bureaucratic hurdles,” he remarked.

Unchecked urbanisation, waste dumping: Study warns of 'invited disaster' as khadi floods threaten half of Surat

An action research report, “Invited Disaster: Khadi Floods in Surat City”, published by two civil rights groups, Paryavaran Suraksha Samiti and the People's Union for Civil Liberties, Surat, states that nearly half of Gujarat's top urban conglomerate—known for its concentration of textile and diamond polishing industries—is affected by the dumping of debris and solid waste, along with the release of treated and untreated sewage into the khadis (rivulets), thereby increasing the risk of flood disaster.

Two decades on, hunger still haunts Gujarat: Survey exposes stark gap behind poverty claims

A Niti Aayog report , released about two years ago, estimated that in Gujarat — which our powers-that-be have long considered a model state — 11.66% of people are "multidimensionally poor," a term referring to an index that seeks to estimate "multiple and simultaneous deprivations" at the household level across three macro categories: health, education, and living standards.

Boeing 787 under scrutiny again after Ahmedabad crash: Whistleblower warnings resurface

A heart-wrenching tragedy has taken place in Ahmedabad. As widely reported, a Boeing 787 Dreamliner plane crashed shortly after taking off from the city’s airport, currently operated by India’s top tycoon, Gautam Adani. The aircraft was carrying 230 passengers and 12 crew members.  As expected, the crash has led to an outpouring of grief across the country. At the same time, there have been demands for the resignation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, and the Civil Aviation Minister.

English proficiency for empowerment: Modi’s SCOPE vision contrasts Amit Shah’s remark

While Union Home Minister Amit Shah may have asserted that soon a time would come when those speaking English in the country would “feel ashamed”, it is ironic that Narendra Modi, when he was Gujarat chief minister, had launched what was called the SCOPE programme, actively involving the University of Cambridge to provide opportunities to the youth of Gujarat to "become not just job seekers but job creators (entrepreneurs)."