Members of various NGOs and tribal leaders, participating in a debate on the status paper of Tribal Sub Plan (TSP) organised by NGO Agragami here on Saturday, opposed diversion and misutilisation of TSP funds in other sectors.
The TSP, which aims for welfare of tribal people, is widely misutilised and diverted to other sectors, said an activist of the Friends' Association for Rural Reconstruction (FAAR).
The activists expressed grave concern over the lackadaisical attitude of the State Government which doesn’t allocate 22 per cent of the budget for development of the 22 per cent of the total population of the State. The TSP fund is not properly utilised at the district level and is widely illegally used for development of the non-scheduled areas, he added. The State Government has not conducted any awareness programme to sensitise tribals about the TSP fund, the activists said. Activists and leaders like MlA RC Hansda, NAWO State president Pramila Swain, Vidya Das, Prof Jagannath Das, Sumani Jhodia, Rukmini Panda and Achyut Dash participated in the debate.
