Dr BR Ambedkar’s 125th birth centenary year has been celebrated by political parties in Delhi and his birth place at Mhow of Madhya Pradesh. lots of discussions are happening over vision of Ambedkar on annihilation of caste towards achieving social democracy in India. The vision of building a democracy is not possible without addressing social inequality that has been continuing in our social structure.
The Constitution of India has made a number of provisions in terms of protection and development leading to social equality. In spite of efforts of last 65 years by the Government, it has been identified by a number of studies that Scheduled Castes (SC) are lagging behind in every aspect of human development in comparison to other caste Hindu social groups. In order to bridge the socio-economic gap, along with other measures, Scheduled Castes Sub Plan (SCSP) was introduced in 1979 by the Central Government. There has been provision that the annual budgets of the Central and State Governments must have allocation of funds exclusively for SCs as per the percentage of their population at State and national level.
These funds have to be allocated by each ministry and department in the State and the funds cannot be diverted for other purposes. The spending of the funds should target individual household, communities and areas having large concentration of SCs. There has been special Central assistance to the SC sub plan received from the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment by the State. But unfortunately, the Government of Odisha has not been following any of the guideline in spending of SCSP in the State. It is a crime against 17.13 per cent of the population of the State which has been victims of historical injustice and continued State apathy. There is not a single scheme being implemented out of State fund, mostly all the Central Government schemes are being implemented by the State.
There has been no attempt by the State to develop specific schemes out of own fund like other States in India. The State Scheduled Caste Welfare Advisory Board headed by the Chief Minister with SC MPs and MlAs as its members is virtually non-functional. Even the routine annual seating is not being conducted. The meeting of State Vigilance and Monitoring Committee headed by the Chief Minister under the provisions of SCs and STs (PoA) Act, 1989 and Rules, 1995, is also not being conducted regularly to discuss the matters relating to atrocities against SCs and STs in the State. The enforcement of PCR Act against untouchability is equally weak in the State due to lack political commitments for social cause.
There are 25 SC MlAs in the Odisha Assembly with 23 of them representing BJD. Two of them only two are Ministers, including one in Cabinet rank and the other in State rank. The SC/ST Development Department is with a State Minister which shows an attitude of less importance to the development of the Dalits by the BJD Government. The elected MPs and MlAs form SC reserve constituencies, chosen by the ruling parties, are made voiceless by the party boss with threat of denial of party ticket for next election. The Congress and BJP have one SC MlA each.
The SCSP funds should ideally be spent on education, employment and livelihood development of SCs towards achieving equality. There has been no initiative by the Government to develop innovative schemes and programmes for the all round development of SCs based on information and research feedback from academics, policy makers and CSOs. As such the State has not yet developed a Scheduled Caste Development Policy or Vision Document for SCs development integrating it with the overall development of the State. The SCs and STs Research and Training Institute(SCSTRTI) ever since its existence in 1952 has done no research on SC development, except organizing few training camps and workshops by the help of nonprofit organizations. The critical information and inputs on SC development based on research has been callously neglected.
The SC and ST Finance Development Cooperative Corporation ltd since its inception in 1979, while SCSP was introduced, with its declared objective of SC development along with focus on scavengers has been depending on the assistance of National Scheduled Caste Finance Development Corporation. The placement linked skill development training programme by OSCFDC for last five years from 2011 to 2015 shows that less than 50 per cent of its target has been achieved with about only 20 per cent placement. In spite of Supreme Court’s directives there has been non implementation of Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act 2013 in the State. The Central Government grants and schemes for SCs and specially scavengers are not being implemented properly and criminally delayed and non-utilized by the bureaucracy.
There has been no innovation in the schemes and caste-based non-viable traditional occupations are routinely encouraged by the department. SC development is more linked to education, as a vast majority of SCs are illiterate and depending on physical labour for livelihood. Education also is one of the most important means of social change and in order to bring change in socio–economic life of scheduled caste, there have been provisions of reservation in educational institutions and other supports such as scholarship to SC students.
A majority of SC students mostly depend on Government run schools as day scholar and very few on residential schools run by the SSD Department. The primary education is the foundation for every child based on which the future education can be built up but unfortunately primary education system is not encouraging for SC children due to lack of Government initiative in addressing poverty and social discrimination in primary schools. The SC day scholar students of class 6th and 7th get Rs150 per year and class 8th get Rs200 per year as pre-matric scholarship.
It is declared that the parents of such students should not be income tax payee. The SSD Department report revealed that from 2014 to 2015 there were 6, 25,590 SC students who got Rs6,811 lakh as pre matric scholarship. Many States like Karala, AP, TN and Telangana have been spending much more on pre matric scholarship. Even they pay it from class one for the day scholars.
SC population’s livelihood is closely connected to land but unfortunately there has been no land distribution programme and the protective laws for the share croppers. A vast majority of rural SC households are engaged as share croppers in agriculture. There are lakhs of homestead less household living over unauthorized habitations without homestead land patta and possession to securely construct a house. A vast majority of SC farmers have small holdings and mostly depend on share cropping but there has been no protection for the share croppers who suffer all kinds of loss during manmade and natural disasters and undergoes exploitations since generations in the absence of State protection.
The SC families in forest area are facing problem to get reorganization as other traditional forest dwellers to get forest land under FRA Act and the Government is knowingly showing discriminatory attitude towards the land less forest dwellers. The Government of Telangana has allocated Rs3,321 crore for SC development out of which Rs1,000 crore has been allocated for purchase of land for land less SC families in the State. The Telangana Government has spent Rs94.45 crore for distributing 2,524 acres of land among 959 SC families in the year 2014-2015. Though there is a land purchase scheme for land less household but this has not been implemented by Government of Odisha.
The State Government should prepare a vision document involving all concerned for the development of the historically marginalized social groups in order to ensure their development at par with others. The Government must have the commitment in implementing all the protective legislations and development plans such as SCSP as an integral part of the overall development of the State towards achieving inclusive growth.
(The writer is a researcher and rights activist who can be mailed at manasbbsr15@gmail.com)