Union budget's 'new way' of sidelining social justice: Govt 'against' empowering SCs, STs

By Umesh Babu*

The Union budget of the year 2024-25 is Rs. 48,20,512 crore out of which only Rs. 1,65,493 crore (3.43%) against the due Rs 7,95,384 crore is allocated for Scheduled Caste and only Rs. 1,32,214 crore (2.74 %) for Scheduled Tribes against the due amount of Rs. 3,95,281 crore as per Scheduled Caste Sub Plan (SCSP) and Tribal Sub-Plan (TSP) of 1975 and 1979. The Union budget grossly failed to allocate the budget as per the policy and it shows that the Union government is totally against the due empowerment of SCs and STs.

The money for direct benefit schemes for the welfare of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes is blatantly diverted to corporate. In this union budget, the Centre government siphoned the budget to irrelevant sectors (against the mandate of SCSP and TSP) like telecommunication, semiconductor, large-scale electronics, and transport industries, fertilizer import, chemical productions etc. from the SC/ST fund. We are highlighting a few of the examples that show how blatantly the government has diverted the budget and violated the Indian Constitution.

Reality of caste-based inequalities: Negligible budget to rehabilitate manual scavengers and their families

No budget allocated for the Self Employment Scheme for Rehabilitation of Manual Scavengers (SRMS) in the last two financial years 2023-2024 and 2024-2025.
Shockingly low amount of Rs. 1 lakh for the entire year 2024-25 to National Safai Karamcharis Finance and Development Corporation (NSKFDC), agency responsible for financing loans and providing financial assistance to the Safai Karamcharis across India.
In 2022-2023 the Union budget allocated for SRMS was 70 crores out of which only 11.1 crore was utilized with a lapse of about 58.9 crore. A similar lapse of more than 50% of the budget can be seen from the year 2020 onwards.
Huge budget of Rs 236.99 crore is given to schemes like National Action for Mechanised Sanitation Ecosystem (NAMASTE) which is a token arrangement to give money to corporations without rehabilitating existing manual scavengers.

Diverting SC/ST budget to corporates: Dalits and Adivasis unlikely beneficiaries

Allocated Rs. 1,543 crore from SC fund and Rs. 597 Cr from ST fund amounting to a total of Rs. 2,140 crore from the SC/ST welfare fund for schemes like Compensation to Service Providers for creation and augmentation of telecom infrastructure.
The Modified Program for Development of Semiconductors and Display Manufacturing Ecosystem in India diverts Rs. 573 crore from SC fund and Rs. 462 crore from ST fund with a total Rs. 1,035 crore.
Rs. 508 crore from SC fund and Rs. 410 crore from ST fund diverted to large scale manufacturing companies under Production linked Incentive for Large Scale Electronics Manufacturing.
A grand total of Rs. 22,052.15 crore given to importers and manufacturers which has no relation to development of SCs/STs through schemes like Subsidy for Import and Indigenous Manufacturing of Urea and Other Fertilizers Phosphorus and Potassium”. Rs. 14,356 crore diverted from SC fund and Rs. 7,696.15 Cr diverted from the ST fund.

Schemes like VISVAS, NAMASTE, SEEDS, PM DAKSH Yojana, SHREYAS, SMILE are only fairy tales of Finance Minister Nirmala Sitaraman. We are shocked to see that there is no budget allocation for the Development Action Plan for SCs, with no way to plan and implement the schemes. While there was expectation of a new scheme for the protection and livelihood of Dalit and Adivasi women from the finance minister, it is shocking that no scheme has been introduced for their benefit in the new budget.

On behalf of Dalit Adivasi Shakti Adhikar Manch (DASAM) and People’s Media Advocacy and Research Centre (PMARC), Sewerage and Allied Workers Forum (SSKM), Indian Sanitation Studies Collective (ISSC) we request the Government of India to take strong action and allocate the budget as per the SCSP and TSP.

----

*Dalit Adivasi Shakti Adhikar Manch (DASAM)

Comments

The golden crop: How turmeric is transforming women's lives in tribal India

By Vikas Meshram* When the lush green fields of turmeric sway in the tribal belt of southern Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, and Gujarat, it is not merely a spice crop — it is the golden glow of self-reliance. In villages where even basic spices once had to be bought from the market, the very soil today is yielding a prosperity that has transformed the lives of thousands of families. At the heart of this transformation is the initiative of Vaagdhara, which has linked turmeric with livelihoods, nutrition, and village self-governance — gram swaraj.

Swami Vivekananda's views on caste and sexuality were 'painfully' regressive

By Bhaskar Sur* Swami Vivekananda now belongs more to the modern Hindu mythology than reality. It makes a daunting job to discover the real human being who knew unemployment, humiliation of losing a teaching job for 'incompetence', longed in vain for the bliss of a happy conjugal life only to suffer the consequent frustration.

Buddhist shrines were 'massively destroyed' by Brahmanical rulers: Historian DN Jha

Nalanda mahavihara By Rajiv Shah Prominent historian DN Jha, an expert in India's ancient and medieval past, in his new book , "Against the Grain: Notes on Identity, Intolerance and History", in a sharp critique of "Hindutva ideologues", who look at the ancient period of Indian history as "a golden age marked by social harmony, devoid of any religious violence", has said, "Demolition and desecration of rival religious establishments, and the appropriation of their idols, was not uncommon in India before the advent of Islam".

Authoritarian destruction of the public sphere in Ecuador: Trumpism in action?

By Pilar Troya Fernández The situation in Ecuador under Daniel Noboa's government is one of authoritarianism advancing on several fronts simultaneously to consolidate neoliberalism and total submission to the US international agenda. These are not isolated measures, but rather a coordinated strategy that combines job insecurity, the dismantling of the welfare state, unrestricted access to mining, the continuation of oil exploitation without environmental considerations, the centralization of power through the financial suffocation of local governments, and the systematic criminalization of all forms of opposition and popular organization.

Echoes of Vietnam and Chile: The devastating cost of the I-A Axis in Iran

By Ram Puniyani The recent joint military actions by Israel and the United States against Iran have been devastating. Like all wars, this conflict is brutal to its core, leaving a trail of human suffering in its wake. The stated pretext for this aggression—the brutality of the Ayatollah Khamenei regime and its nuclear ambitions—clashes sharply with the reality of the diplomatic landscape. Iran had expressed a willingness to remain at the negotiating table, signaling a readiness to concede points emerging from dialogue.

False claim? What Venezuela is witnessing is not surrender but a tactical retreat

By Manolo De Los Santos The early morning hours of January 3, 2026, marked an inflection point in Venezuela and Latin America’s centuries-long struggle for self-determination and independence. Operation Absolute Resolve, ordered by the Trump administration, constituted the most brutal and direct military assault on a sovereign state in the region in recent memory. In a shocking operation that left hundreds dead, President Nicolás Maduro and First Lady Cilia Flores were illegally kidnapped from Venezuelan soil and transported to the United States, where they now face fabricated charges in a New York federal detention facility. In the two months since this act of war, a torrent of speculation has emerged from so-called experts and pundits across the political spectrum. This has followed three main lines: One . The operation’s success indicated treason at the highest levels of the Bolivarian Revolution. Two . Acting President Delcy Rodríguez and the remaining leadership have abandone...

Beyond the election manifesto: Why climate is now a kitchen table issue

By Vikas Meshram* March has long been a month of gentle transition, the period when winter softly retreats and a mild warmth signals nature’s renewal. Yet, in recent years, this dependable rhythm has been disrupted. This year, since the beginning of March, temperatures across vast swathes of the country have shattered previous records, soaring to between 35 and 40 degrees Celsius in some regions. This is not a mere fluctuation in the weather; it is a serious and alarming indicator of climate change .

The selective memory of a violent city: Uttam Nagar and the invisible victims of Delhi

By Sunil Kumar* Hundreds of murders take place in Delhi every year, yet only a few incidents become topics of nationwide discussion. The question is: why does this happen? Today, the incident in Uttam Nagar has become the centre of national debate. A 26-year-old man, Tarun Kumar, was killed following a dispute that reportedly began after a balloon hit a small child. In several colonies of Delhi, slogans such as “Jai Shri Ram” and “Vande Mataram” are being raised while demanding the death penalty for Tarun’s killers. As a result, nearly 50,000 residents of Hastsal JJ Colony are now living in what resembles a state of confinement.

As India logs historic emissions drop, expert warns govt against 'policy blunders'

By A Representative In a significant development that underscores the rapid transformation of India's energy landscape, new data reveals the country recorded its largest drop in power sector emissions in 2025. However, a top power sector analyst has urged the Union Government to view this "silver lining" as a stark warning against continuing to invest in new coal, large hydro, and nuclear projects, which he argues could become "redundant" stranded assets.

Search This Blog