17.48 hrs.
Title: Regarding welfare of Tribals.
(HASSAN): Sir, I am thankful to you for giving me this opportunity to discuss an issue related to tribal welfare. I am also thankful to my colleague, Shri Bhatruhari Mahatab for having put a Starred Question on this issue on the 7th of August, 2001.
Sir, this is an important matter and it needs personal attention… (Interruptions)
श्री राजेश रंजन उर्फ पप्पू यादव : सभापति जी, हमें कब समय मिलेगा?
सभापति महोदय : आपको नैक्स्ट टाइम समय मिलेगा, जब यह आगे सदन में आयेगा। अभी हाफ एन ऑवर डिस्कशन हो रहा है। इसे टाइम ५.४७ बजे फिक्स टाइम पर शुरू होना था। यह क्वैश्चन था, इस पर हाफ एन ऑवर डिस्कशन हो रहा है।
श्री राजेश रंजन उर्फ पप्पू यादव : हम कब बोलेंगे?
सभापति महोदय : ऐसा नहीं होता है। सदन का समय समाप्त हो गया, आपको आगे समय मिलेगा।
श्री राजेश रंजन उर्फ पप्पू यादव : कब मिलेगा?
सभापति महोदय : जब भी समय आयेगा।
श्री राजेश रंजन उर्फ पप्पू यादव : समय तो हर साल आयेगा तो हम अगले साल बोलेंगे क्या?
सभापति महोदय : सदन का जो एलाटेड टाइम था, वह समाप्त हो गया, इसलिए जब आगे समय आयेगा, उस समय आप बोलेंगे। अभी यह विषय कंटीन्यू कर रहा है। सदन तो रूल्स के अनुसार चलेगा।
SHRI G. PUTTA SWAMY GOWDA : The reply given by the Minister was not satisfactory. Tribals comprise about 8.1 per cent of the country’s population. That is a considerable number. The Government is not taking care of this sizeable population. In this connection I am reminded of what hon. President of India has said in his address to the nation on 14th August, 2001, on the eve of the Independence Day. He said, ‘It is very essential to strike a balance between freedom and justice.’ This is hundred per cent correct and fully relevant to the issue under discussion.
The gap between haves and havenots is increasing under this NDA Government’s regime. This Government has no political will or commitment to remove the imbalances in the society. According to the figures available, for construction of Girls Hostels, the Government has released Rs.32 lakh in the year 2000-01. For construction of Boys Hostels, an amount of Rs.32 lakh only was released. For Ashram Schools, funds to the tune of Rs.5.32 crore were released but not a paisa has been spent. This shows that this Government has no political will and commitment to take care of the needs of the tribal people in the country. If the Government fails to revise its policy towards tribal people, there would be a scenario where one could see two Indias – one of haves and one of have-nots.
The condition of tribal people residing mostly in the remote rural areas is going from bad to worse. I bring this matter to the attention of the Government with the hope that the Government would come out with a specific plan for upliftment of tribal people in the country and that the Government would endeavour to remove imbalances in the society.
The President also said in his address that the poor were getting impatient. I would say that the tribals are getting impatient. They are leading pathetic lives. We all have heard of the incidents of starvation deaths of tribals. Till recently, people belonging to a tribe in the hilly areas of Karnataka were using bamboo as a vessel to cook rice. Even today some of them depend on hunting for their livelihood. In Orissa and in the North-Eastern States there is a large population of Scheduled Tribes. More funds are required for the development of primitive tribals. Increase in the Budget allocation for tribal welfare schemes has been meagre. Special Assistance sanctioned towards Tribal Sub-Plan during the year 1999-2000 was just Rs.400 crore.
This amount remained the same during 2000-01 also. But no money has been spent for this special scheme. In fact, my first question to the hon. Minister is that why there is no increase in the grants under the Special Central Allocation for the Tribal Sub Plan.
I want to mention one more point. Has the hon. Minister got any monitoring system to see that the amount released reaches the needy ones? Otherwise, Sir, as our former Prime Minister, late Rajiv Gandhi had also said, only 10 per cent of the total amount released would reach the needy.
There is no question of blaming one another. All of us have to introspect. Creating a new Ministry is not enough. Monitoring is more important. More than the middlemen and the unscrupulous ‘outsiders’, the tribals across the country should beware of the Government machinery itself. A large amount of money given by the Centre to protect them against exploitation and their upliftment has been grossly misused by the authorities.
My second question is whether it is a fact that the money is being released often on the last day of the financial year. If so, will the hon. Minister kindly change this trend?
My third question is about the backlog in the reservation of jobs in the State Government and Central Government services. Is it a fact that this backlog is mounting year after year? If so, what are the measures contemplated by the hon. Minister to clear this backlog?
My fourth question is about the allocation of amounts. The amount allocated for the development of primitive Tribal groups for the year 2001-02 is Rs. 1,250 lakh. What is the amount released till today?
MR. CHAIRMAN : Please conclude now.
SHRI G. PUTTA SWAMY GOWDA: Sir, I am concluding within a minute.
They have allocated Rs. 1,250 lakh. But even this amount has not been spent properly.
Sir, my fifth question is about the opening up of residential schools. In the Ninth Plan, under TSP, the Centre proposed to establish 100 residential schools on the pattern of ‘Navodaya Vidayalayas’. What is the number of such schools established in the country and particularly in Karnataka as on today?
Sir, my sixth and the last question is about the awareness programmes. What special efforts have been made by the Ministry to bring in awareness of all the schemes both at the Government level and voluntary organisation level relating to Tribals, primitive tribals and migratory tribals like banjaras and otherwise?
:सभापति महोदय, भारत की कुल आबादी का लगभग ८.६ प्रतिशत लगभग ९ प्रतिशत आदिवासियों की जनसंख्या है। पिछले अनेक वर्षों से आदिवासियों में अनुसूचित जनजाति की सुविधा के लिए, उनके अच्छे सुधार के लिए या उन्हें अनेक प्रकार से सुविधाएं देने के लिए जो कार्यक्रम आयोजित किये गये, उनमें या तो पूरी तरह से उन्हें उनका लाभ नहीं मिला या मिला भी तो किंचित मात्र लाभ मिला और चाहे हम किसी भी प्रदेश को लें, चाहे मेघालय, मणिपुर, बिहार, उत्तर प्रदेश, झारखंड, मध्य प्रदेश, छत्तीसगढ़, महाराष्ट्र के अन्य भाग या दक्षिण भारत के कुछ भाग हों जिनमें आदिवासी बहुल जनसंख्या है, मैं माननीय मंत्री जी से दो-चार प्रश्न पूछना चाहूंगा कि पिछले तीन वर्षों में क्या माननीय मंत्री जी यह बताने की कृपा करेंगे कि आदिवासी या जनजाति के लोग जो वर्षों से…( )