Ministry of Tribal Affairs

About Ministry

• The Ministry was set up in 1999 after the bifurcation of Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment with the objective of providing a more focused approach towards the integrated socio-economic development of the Scheduled Tribes (the most underprivileged section of the Indian Society) in a coordinated and planned manner. Before the formation of the Ministry, tribal affairs were handled by different Ministries at different points in time.
• The Ministry of Tribal Affairs is the Nodal Ministry for overall policy planning and coordination of programmes for development of STs.
• The subjects allocated to the Ministry of Tribal Affairs are as follows:
  1. It covers all tribal people and all areas with tribal population across the country.
  2. Social security and social insurance to the Scheduled Tribes
  3. Tribal Welfare: Planning, project formulation, research, evaluation, statistics and training
  4. Promotion and development of voluntary efforts on tribal welfare
  5. Development of Scheduled Tribes
  6. Scheduled Areas
  7. Monitoring of ST Welfare Grants, based on the framework and mechanism designed by NITI Ayog
  8. The National Commission for Scheduled Tribes

 

EKLAVYA MODEL RESIDENTIAL SCHOOL (EMRS)

• Started in 1998

Objectives

• • To provide quality middle and high level education to Scheduled Tribe (ST) students in remote areas, 
  • to enable them to avail of reservation in high and professional educational courses and as jobs in government and public and private sectors
  • to have access to the best opportunities in education at par with the non-ST population.

Adopted Strategy

• • Comprehensive physical, mental and socially relevant development of all students enrolled in each and every EMRS.
  • Focus differentially on the educational support to be made available to those in Standards XI to X, so that their distinctive needs can be met.
  • Support the construction of infrastructure that provides education, physical, environmental and cultural needs of student life.
  • Support the annual running expenses in a manner that offers reasonable remuneration to the staff and upkeep of the facilities.

Salient Features

• • All blocks with more than 50% ST population and at least 20,000 Tribal persons will have Ekalavya Model Residential School (EMRS) by 2022 including 12 Eklavya Model Day Boarding School (EMDBS).
  • EMDBS will be established wherever density of ST population is higher in identified Sub-Districts/Blocks (90% or more).
  • Ekalavya schools provide boarding and lodging facilities to tribal students.
  • They are at par with the Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas (schools aimed at providing high quality education to all students irrespective of their socio-economic backgrounds).
  • These schools will have special facilities for preserving local art and culture besides providing training in sports and skill development.
  • It has been decided to set up an Autonomous Society under the Ministry of Tribal Affairs similar to Navodaya Vidyalaya Samiti to run the EMRSs. (The Society to function through an Executive Committee (EC) under the Chairmanship of Secretary, Tribal Affairs. The EC shall be responsible for the management of all affairs including allocation of funds for setting up and functioning of EMRSs. The composition of the Steering Committee will be decided with the approval of the Minister, Tribal Affairs.

 

SCHEME OF ASHRAM SCHOOLS IN TRIBAL SUB-PLAN AREAS

Objectives

• • to increase education among Scheduled Tribes including PTGs (Primitve Tribes Group).

Salient Features

• • This is a centrally sponsored scheme operational in the Tribal Sub-Plan Areas
  • 100% central assistance is provided for construction of all ST girls’ ashram schools and boys’ ashram schools in naxal-affected districts identified by Ministry of Home Affairs from time to time and for boys’ ashram schools other than in naxal-affected districts only, 50% of the total estimated cost is shared by the Ministry. Under the scheme, only construction cost is provided in full or shared by the Ministry.
  • It has been proposed by the Government to discontinue the Scheme from 2018-19 and subsume the intervention in the scheme ‘Special Central Assistance to Tribal SubScheme (SCA to TSS/TSP)’. SCA to TSP gets 100% grant from centre.
  • These schools are demand driven and are from primary to senior secondary level.

 

VANBANDHU KALYAN YOJANA

• Central Sector Scheme

Objectives

• • Improving the quality of life in tribal areas
  • Improving the quality of education
  • Qualitative and Sustainable employment for tribal families
  • Bridging infrastructure gap with focus on quality
  • Protection of tribal culture and heritage

Salient Features

• • It is a central sector scheme covering all tribal people and all areas with tribal population across the country.
  • The scheme ensures that all the intended benefits through various schemes of Central and State Governments covered under the respective Tribal Sub-Plans actually reach them by way of appropriate convergence.

Strategy

• • Strengthening of institutions meant for delivery of goods and services (Technical & Financial powers)
  • Convergence of scattered resources & activities being undertaken under various components.

 

VAN DHAN YOJANA

Objectives

• • to provide skill upgradation and capacity building training and setting up of primary processing and value addition facility.
  • To promote MFPs-centric livelihood development of tribal gatherers and artisans.
  • To mainstream the tribal community by promoting primary level value addition to MFP (Minor Forest Produce) at grassroots level.

Salient Features

• • Under Van Dhan, 10 Self Help Groups of 30 Tribal MFP gatherers is constituted to form a Van Dhan Vikas Samuh.
  • They are then trained and provided with working capital to add value to the MFP products, which they collect from the jungle.
  • These SHGs shall be appropriately trained on sustainable harvesting/collection, primary processing & value addition and be formed into clusters so as to aggregate their stock in tradable quantity.
  • These clusters will then be linked with facility of primary processing in a Van Dhan Vikas Kendra.
  • The stock after primary processing shall be supplied by these SHGs to the State Implementing Agencies or direct tie up for supply to corporate secondary processor.
  • For creation of secondary level value addition facility (at district level) and tertiary level value addition facility at (State level), large Corporates shall be involved under PPP I NTFPs are primary source of income & model. livelihood for about 5 crore tribals in India.
  • Working under the leadership of Collector these groups can then market their products not only within the States but also outside the States.
  • Training and technical support is provided by TRIFED (nodal agency). It is proposed to develop 30,000 such centres in the country.
  • Intended benefits – Through this initiative, the share of tribals in the value chain of Non-Timber Forest Produce is expected to rise from the present 20% to around 60%.

Van Dhan Vikas Kendra

• • • Van Dhan Vikas Kendra are multi-purpose establishments for providing skill upgradation, capacity building training and setting up of primary processing and value addition facility.
    • First model Van dhan Vikas Kendra set up in Bijapur, Chattisgarh.
    • It is being implemented for training of 300 training beneficiaries.

Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development of India Ltd. (TRIFED)

• • • A PSU under Ministry of Tribal Affairs, established in 1987
    • Objective – socio-economic development of tribal people by way of marketing development of the tribal products
    • It runs chain of retail outlets under the brand name “TRIBES INDIA”
    • It also focuses on trainings for skill up-gradation and capacity building of tribal artisans & gatherers of Minor Forest Produce
    • Implements Tribal scheme “Institutional Support for Development & Marketing of tribal products/produce”.

 

SCHEME FOR ‘MECHANISM FOR MARKETING OF MINOR FOREST PRODUCE (MFP) THROUGH MINIMUM SUPPORT PRICE (MSP) AND DEVELOPMENT OF VALUE CHAIN FOR MFP”

Objectives

• • to ensure fair returns to the MFP gatherers mainly through MS for identified MFP collected by them along with necessary infrastructure at local level.

Salient Features

• • Launched in the year 2013-14 and it then covered only ten MFP items and was applicable to the Schedule V States only.
  • In October 2016 the extent and coverage of the scheme was increased by adding more MFP items and also rendering the scheme applicable country wide.
  • MSP would be determined based on the baseline survey of price for each of the MFP, its cost of collection, cost of cleaning and primary processing, packaging and transportation cost for each state.
  • A pricing cell constituted in the TRIFED would be assigned this task. The Ministry of Tribal Affairs would finally approve and announce state wise MSP for each MFP taken up for that state.
  • The price review to be carried out every three years based on revision in cost of collection.

 

YOUNG ENTREPRENEURS OF TRIFED (YET)

• YET is one of the initiatives by TRIFED to scale up Retail Marketing of Tribal Products for the benefit of tribal artisans.

Objective

• • To expand sale operations by empaneling young and smart sales boys/girls (“Young Entrepreneurs of TRIFED (YET)”) for undertaking house to house campaign for sale of tribal products.
  • TRIFED shall pay a commission of 10% on net sales to YET.

TRIFOOD Scheme

• • • It is a joint initiative of Ministry of Food Processing Industry, Ministry of Tribal Affairs and TRIFED.
    • Under this scheme a tertiary value addition center will be set up in Jagdalpur in Chhattisgarh and Raigad in Maharashtra.
    • A highlight of this is the production of “Heritage Mahua” drink. The traditional Mahua tribal drink will be mainstreamed and marketed all over the Country under this project.

 

 

 

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