Welfare of Tribal Women

Welfare of Tribal Women – The government has adopted the Tribal Sub GPlan (now called Scheduled Tribe Component’) strategy for ensuring the overall development of tribal areas across the country while ensuring inclusive growth of STS including tribal women. While the major schemes/programmes for providing infrastructural facilities and other amenities like roads, electricity, water, education, health etc. in the tribal areas are implemented by the concerned Central Ministries/departments and State Governments.

Welfare of Tribal Women

The Ministry of Tribal Affairs implements schemes/programmes which are primarily aimed at filling critical gaps in these sectors for the tribal population. Ministry of Tribal Affairs while trying to ensure that women benefit equally from general schemes also has some special schemes meant for the benefit of ST women and girls as given below:

1. Scheme of Girls & Boys Hostels for STS: Under the scheme, Central assistance is given to States / UTS/Universities for the construction of new hostel buildings and/or extension of existing hostels. State Governments are eligible for a 100% central share for the construction of all Girls’ hostels and also for the construction of Boys’ hostels in Naxal-affected areas. The funding pattern for other Boys’ Hostel to State Governments is on a 50:50 basis.
2. Scheme of Ashram Schools in tribal areas: The objective of the scheme is to provide residential schools for STS to increase the literacy rate among the tribal students and to bring them to par with other populations of the country. Under the scheme, State Governments are eligible for a 100% central share for the construction of all Girls’ Ashram Schools and also for the construction of Boys’ Ashram Schools in naxal-affected areas. The funding pattern for the other Boys’ Ashram Schools is on 50:50 basis.
3. Scheme for Strengthening Education among ST Girls in Low Literacy Districts: This scheme is being implemented in 54 identified low literacy Districts where the ST population is 25% or more, and ST female literacy rate is below 35%, or its fractions, as per 2001 Census.

4. Special Central Assistance to Tribal Sub Scheme (SCA to TSS) (hitherto known as SCA to Tribal Sub Plan (TSP)): It is a 100% grant from the Government of India. Its objective is to bridge the gap between the Scheduled Tribes (ST) population and others by providing support for education, health, sanitation, water supply, livelihood, skill development, minor infrastructure etc. It is a flexible scheme and supplements the efforts of the line Ministries/Departments. Benefits of Rural Tourism
5. Grants under Article 275(1) of the Constitution: It is a 100% grant from the Government of India. Funding under this programme is to enable the State to meet the cost of such schemes of development as may be undertaken by the State for the purpose of promoting the welfare of Scheduled Tribes in that State or raising the level of administration of Scheduled Areas therein to that of the administration of the rest of the areas of that State.
6. Adivasi Mahila Sashaktikaran Yojana: National Scheduled Tribes Finance and Development Corporation (NSTFDC), an apex organization under the Ministry of Tribal Affairs is implementing this exclusive scheme for tribal women. Under the scheme, Scheduled Tribes women can undertake any income-generation activity. Loans up to 90 per cent for scheme costing up to Rs. 1 lakh is provided at a concessional rate of interest of 4 per cent per annum.

Tribal Welfare: Planning, project formulation, research, evaluation, statistics and training. Promotion and development of voluntary efforts on tribal welfare. Development of Scheduled Tribes. Scheduled Areas. Monitoring of ST Welfare Grants, based on the framework and mechanism designed by NITI Ayog.