11-Aug-2021: Development of Tribal Societies

Government is implementing Tribal Sub-Plan (TSP)/Schedule Tribe Component (STC)/Development Action Plan for Development of Scheduled Tribes (DAPSTs) for overall development of tribal people across the country including North Eastern Region (NER). Besides Ministry of Tribal Affairs, 40 Central Ministries / Departments have been obligated by NITI Aayog for earmarking certain percentage of their total Scheme allocation every year as TSP funds for tribal development. TSP funds are spent by different Central Ministries / Departments under their schemes for various development projects relating to education, health, agriculture, irrigation, roads, housing, drinking water, electrification, employment generation, skill development, etc. for accelerated socio-economic development of Scheduled Tribes in the country. State Governments are also supposed to earmark TSP funds in proportion to ST population (Census 2011) in the State with respect to total State Plan. Ministry of Tribal Affairs provides additive to these initiatives by way of plugging critical gaps. Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region as per its TSP mandate of 27.18% expenditure of its scheme, has been spending more than that by implementing a number of projects in the physical infrastructure relating to water supply, power, connectivity, specially the projects promoting tourism and social sector for creation of infrastructure in the areas of primary and secondary sectors of education and health, resulting upliftment of the tribal population in the NER.

Ministry of Tribal Affairs envisages to revamp the existing schemes for development of tribals for next five years i.e. 2021-22 to 2025-26.

2-Aug-2021: Tribal affairs Ministry has launched ‘Adi-Prashikshan Portal’ to create an end-to-end centralized online interactive training platform on tribal development

Ministry of Tribal Affairs (MoTA) has launched ‘Adi-Prashikshan Portal’ on 16th June 2021 to act as a central repository of all training programs conducted by Ministry of Tribal Affairs, State Tribal Research Institutes (TRIs), National Society for Education of Tribal Students (NESTS) and other organizations funded by the Ministry for strengthening the capacities (in terms of knowledge, skills, attitude) of government functionaries, ST PRI members, Teachers, SHG women, Youth and Tribal Communities.

The main objective of the portal is to create an end-to-end centralized online interactive training platform on tribal development which brings together training organizers, thematic experts/resource persons, master trainers, trainees and training material at one place.

All Tribal Research Institutes including Gujarat Tribal Research & training Society, Gandhinagar have been given training on the functionality of the portal. All trainers, trainees and master trainers related to the training programs organized or funded by the Ministry are required to be registered through this portal.

17-May-2021: Ministry of Tribal Affairs and Microsoft sign MoU on Joint initiative for Digital Transformation of Tribal Schools

With a vision to build an inclusive, skills-based economy, the Ministry of Tribal Affairs (MTA) today inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Microsoft to support the digital transformation of schools such as Eklavya Model Residential Schools (EMRS) and Ashram Schools, among others under the Ministry at an online event ‘Empowering Youth For Success’.  Under affirmative action initiative,  Microsoft will make AI curriculum available to tribal students in both English and Hindi at all EMRS schools under the Ministry to skill educators and students in next-generation technologies including Artificial Intelligence. 

The event was graced by the Union Minister of Tribal Affairs, Sh. Arjun Munda; Union Minister of State for Tribal Affairs Smt Renuka Saruta ; Secretary , Tribal Affairs , Shri Anil Jha and Shri Navtez Bal, Executive Director- Public Sector, Microsoft India and senior officers of the Ministry and EMRS.

Speaking at the event, Minister for Tribal Affairs Shri Arjun Munda said that our students need to get ready to compete at the global level. “This program will prove beneficial in terms of readiness, preparedness of our students at various international forums. Though these programs, our students would get the required skill set through digital transformation and this would open a new chapter with AI and coding being a part of the curriculum,” he said.

Shri Munda also added that for the digital India Mission to be successful every segment of the society needs to be empowered and he hoped that this Microsoft program would be able to bridge the gap between the tribal students and others.

Speaking on occasion Smt. Renuka Singh Saruta, Minister of State for Tribal Affairs said that this is unique opportunity for the tribal students to get global standard education and to get a level playing field.

“This initiative can be a great help to the tribal students for maintaining continuity in their education in this lockdown period. What is great about the program is that not only the students, but 5000 teachers nominated by the ministry across these schools would be provided with professional training,” she added.

Under this program in the first phase, 250 EMRS schools have been adopted by Microsoft out of which 50 EMRS schools will be given intensive training and 500 master trainers would be trained in the first phase.

Teachers across states in India will be trained in a phased manner for using productivity technologies like Office 365 and AI applications in teaching, helping them deliver blended or remote learning experiences to students in a more personalized, productive and secure manner. Teacher trainings will introduce them to the world of virtual collaboration and how teaching can be augmented with virtual field trips or remote sessions with experts. The program will also offer opportunities for teachers to earn professional e-badges and e-certificates from the Microsoft Education Centre.

Speaking about the partnership, Shri Navtez Bal, Executive Director, Public Sector, Microsoft India, said “The past year in both policy and practice has shown us that the future of learning will be more personalized and driven by technology. Our partnership with the Ministry of Tribal Affairs is a step to enable education equity, providing equal opportunity and access for the next generation of learners and educators from schools under the Ministry. We are deeply committed to the digital transformation of education in India and to support a community who will play a key role in shaping India's next phase of growth.”

Sh. Anil Kumar Jha, Secretary, Ministry of Tribal Affairs stated that the transformational change in the new generation will happen through education and health. “This program will ensure that tribal students get chance to change their future, their environment, their village, and overall community. The active partnership by Microsoft will help in creating the talent pool that will be an asset to the country in the future,” He also said that this program should not be a one off but a continuous process through generations creating a repository of knowledge.

Under the partnership, students from schools under the Ministry will be mentored on projects that involve AI applications for societal good and the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Students will also be trained and exposed to gamified environments on Minecraft to help build design thinking skills. To enable inclusion and access, Microsoft will make AI curriculum available to the schools and students in both English and Hindi.

The initiative will also enable the professional development of educators, enabling them to use technology in classrooms. Microsoft will work closely with schools across states under the Ministry of Tribal Affairs to accelerate digital transformation. These schools will be equipped with the technology, training and tools required to transform them into Microsoft Showcase Schools, which embody technological innovation in teaching, use productivity insights for decision making and create accessible and personalized learning experiences for every student.

11-Feb-2021: Funds Allocated to NGOs for Tribal Welfare

The Government has adopted a multi-pronged strategy for overall development of tribal people across the country which includes support for education, health, sanitation, water supply, skill development, livelihood, etc. Major part of infrastructure development and provision of basic amenities in tribal areas / regions in the country is carried out through various schemes / programmes of concerned Central Ministries and State Governments concerned, while the Ministry of Tribal Affairs provides additive to these initiatives by way of plugging critical gaps. A list of schemes/ programmes being implemented by the Ministry of Tribal Affairs for the welfare of the tribal people in the country including in the State of Maharashtra is given below.

The Ministry of Tribal Affairs is implementing two schemes namely 'Grant-In-Aid to Voluntary Organisation Working for the Welfare of Scheduled Tribes' and 'Strengthening Education among Scheduled Tribe Girls in Low Literacy Districts’ through Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs)/Voluntary Organisations (VOs).The details of the NGOs/VOs and funds released to them  under  these  schemes during last two years and current year are placed given below.

The Government is providing the assistance directly to beneficiaries including Scheduled Tribes (STs) through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) under various schemes such as pension schemes- Atal Pension  Yojna, Scholarship schemes, PAHAL-Direct Benefits Transfer for LPG(DBTL), PM Awaas Yojna, Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN), Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana (PMMVY) etc.

16-Jan-2021: Ministry of Tribal Affairs Bags Prestigious SKOCH Challenger Award for “Best Performance In E-Governance”& 3 Gold Awards for Its Initiatives

The Ministry of Tribal Affairs (MoTA) received the coveted “SKOCH Challenger Award”-“Best Performance in e-Governance” today for its various initiatives taken during last year. The Award was received by the Union Minister for Tribal Affairs, Shri Arjun Munda, at the Virtual SKOCH Summit. The Ministry also received 3 Gold Awards for its initiatives namely “Eco-Rehabilitation of tribal villages through Innovative design in water management using Ice-stupa”, Swasthya: Tribal Health and Nutritional Portal and the Performance Dashboard “Empowering Tribals Transforming India”  which were received by Dr Naval Jit Kapoor, Joint Secretary on behalf of the Ministry.

Shri Arjun Munda spoke on “Samavesh ki LokNiti” highlighting different initiatives taken by the Ministry for tribal welfare in area of education, health and livelihood. He also released a booklet on key reforms and initiatives undertaken by Ministry under visionary leadership of the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi during last few years.  While going reference to Mungerkar Committee report of 2009 and Census figures, he said that tribal areas being the richest in mineral and rich natural resource base are inhabited by the poorest people of the country. He said that his Ministry is ensuring digitalization to ensure that the benefits reach tribal areas and their lives are transformed through various initiatives. “Our digital initiative will step up delivery of services and programmes in remote tribal areas ”, the Minister explained. Shri Arjun Munda said that just spending funds is not sufficient, what is important is to see how much  benefit has reached the tribals, how it has transformed their lives and what permanent institutional mechanisms were created in the process. The Minister opined, ”Everybody talks about utilizing tribal resources but there is hardly any discussion about developing the tribals as a resource”.

Mr. Deepak Khandekar, Secretary, MoTA said that  to assimilate with the larger vision of ‘Digital India’ and to realize the cherished goal of e-governance all 5 Scholarship Schemes are  end to end digitalized and has enabled smooth transfer of scholarship to the account of 30 lakh beneficiaries every year. The availability of data on  Performance dashboard adds to the transparency.

Speaking on occasion, Sh. Sameer Kochar, Chairman SKOCH group said that SKOCH Challenger Award is non-competitive and conferred for having made a definitive impact on governance improvement and growth of India. These are based on primary research and recommendations by the Collegium of past SKOCH Challenger Awardees and the Distinguished Fellows of SKOCH Development Foundation. Previously this award has been conferred on Ministry of Rural development, Ministry of HRD and Ministry of Urban Affairs.  He talked about IT Initiatives of Ministry including development of 4 Scholarship Portals, Health and Nutrition Portal, Sickle Cell Disease Support Corner, Performance Dashboard.

Ice- Stupa is a unique project to solve the water problem in the Ladakh region which faces shortage due to climate change and has caused displacement of villagers in search of job opportunities. The structure is built comprising of locally found material with large water retention capacity, which looks like Stupa.  MoTA in partnership with the Students' Educational and Cultural Movement of Ladakh (SECMOL) are making these Ice Stupas through community participation. This year 26 Ice Stupas were formed saving 60 million litres of water.

Tribal health issues are very different from general population and there was lack of authentic and scientific data on tribal health and nutrition.  Swasthya, Health and Nutrition developed  in association with Piramal provides information health and nutrition status of the tribal population in 177 tribal dominated districts.

Ministry of Tribal Affairs is not only implementing its own schemes but also monitoring Central and State Schedule Tribe Component (earlier known as Tribal Sub plan) which has budget of more than 2 lakh crore per annum.  Despite such a huge budget, tribals still lag behind in most of indicators. In last 2 years, to fulfil Digital India goals, Ministry has end to end digitalised all its schemes to ensure that amount spent on tribal welfare is effectively monitored.   Ministry has partnered with reputed organizations to develop innovative models with various Non-Governmental and private sector as partners. The objective is to dismantle inefficient and burdensome practices and encouraging best practices.

The other IT Initiatives of Ministry which are linked to the Performance Dashboard are National Tribal Research Portal,, Tribal Repository of research papers,   NGO Grant Tracking System, Scheduled Tribe Component Monitoring System, Going Online As Leaders (GOAL)- Digital Entrepreneurship, Spring Water Atlas, National Migration Repository, Adigrams.  All these IT initiatives together ensure that the funds allocated for welfare of tribals are effectively utilized.

Last year Ministry had received was SKOCH Gold Award for its “Empowerment of Tribals through IT-enabled Scholarship Schemes” project of Scholarship Division of the Ministry. MoTA is fully committed to the smooth and effective implementation of the Direct Benefits Transfer (DBT) that aims to bring transparency, eliminate misuse of funds and enable enhanced monitoring of the Schemes implemented by the Government of India.

2-Jan-2021: Year End Review- 2020 - Ministry of Tribal Affairs

The Ministry of Tribal Affairs is the nodal Ministry for overall policy, planning and coordination of programmes for development of Scheduled Tribes (STs). To this end, Ministry of Tribal Affairs has undertaken activities that follow from the subjects allocated under the Government of India (Allocation of Business) Rules, 1961.There was considerable progress in digital mechanisms and online monitoring systems especially for scholarship schemes and expenditure of funds for tribal welfare. Tribal medicine emerged as another priority area along with tribal research. Expansion of Eklavya Model Residential Schools was stepped up this year while empowerment of tribals through schemes like Van Dhan Yojana and Aadi Mahotsavas also remained on the forefront. Affirmation of tribal rights and their role in forest development was another important highlight this year.

Expansion of Scheme of Minimum Support Price(MSP)  for Minor Forest Produce(MFP) and Upward Revision of MSP of Existing Items during 2020

During 2020, sweeping changes were made in the existing list of MFP covered under MSP as well as upward revision of MSP of 49 items of MFP in view of the exceptional and very difficult circumstances prevailing in the country on account of the COVID-19 Pandemic, and the potential of the Ministry of Tribal Affairs scheme to offer the much needed support to the tribal MFP gatherers.

The unprecedented circumstances caused by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic threw up challenges and resulted in a severe crisis among the tribal population. Unemployment among youth, reverse migration of tribals threatened to throw the entire tribal economy off track. It is in such a scenario that the MSP for MFP has presented an opportunity to all the States.

In May this year, the Ministry of Tribal Affairs announced Inclusion of 23 additional Minor Forest Produce (MFP) items and stipulation of their Minimum Support Price (MSP) under the Centrally Sponsored Scheme titled "Mechanism for Marketing of Minor Forest Produce (MFP) through Minimum Support Price (MSP) and development of value chain of MFP". This decision enhancing the coverage from 50 to 73 items.

In another crucial announcement affecting the livelihoods of tribal gatherers, the Government also revised the Minimum Support Price (MSP) for Minor Forest Produce (MFP) of 49 items. The increase across various items of minor forest produce ranges from 16% to 66%.

The increase in MSP as well as expansion of List of covered items under MFP gave the much needed momentum to procurement of Minor Tribal Produce this year. MSP for MFP scheme is to  address several issues of exploitation by local traders, ensuring fair returns on their produce. The Scheme provides a social safety net to these underprivileged forest dwellers, and to aid in their empowerment.

14 of the newly added items, otherwise agricultural produce, are not commercially grown in the North Eastern part of India but are found to grow in the wild in forests. Hence, the Ministry favourably considered to include these specific items as MFP items for the North-East.

Both the above initiatives gave a massive thrust to procurement of MFP by the central and state agencies as well as private traders. The procurement by Central agencies was an unprecedented amount of about Rs 150 crore accompanied by manifold higher procurement of MFP by state agencies as well as private traders.

Ministry of Tribal Affairs launches ‘Goal’ programme for Digital Skilling of Tribal Youth across India in partnership with Facebook (15th May, 2020)

Ministry Tribal Affairs launched the “GOAL (Going Online As Leaders)” programme. The GOAL programme is designed to provide mentorship to tribal youth through digital mode. The digitally enabled program envisages to act as a catalyst to explore hidden talents of the tribal youth, which will help in their personal development as well as contribute to all-round upliftment of their society. The link of the Webinar is as follows :

https://www.facebook.com/arjunmunda/videos/172233970820550/UzpfSTY1Nzg2NDIxNzU5NjMzNDoyODg4MDg1MTAxMjQwODkw/

The Digital literacy has gained importance in view of challenges posed by Covid pandemic. MoTA’s partnership with Facebook through GOAL programme has come at the right time to provide a platform to tribal youth and women to move ahead in life. The program intends to upskill and empower 5,000 tribal youths in the current phase to harness the full potential of digital platforms and tools to learn new ways of doing business, explore and connect with domestic and international markets. The digital skilling and technology will integrate them into the mainstream. The programme has been designed with a long term vision to develop the potential of tribal youth and women to help them acquire skills and knowledge through mentorship in various sectors including horticulture, food processing, bee keeping, tribal art and culture, medicinal herbs, entrepreneurship among others. Starting with 5000, the programme can be extended to cover any number of tribal persons who show keen interest in being mentored to achieve their goals.

The intent and content of GOAL program is unique and influential. This will go a long way in creating an environment for empowerment of tribal women by connecting them with digital world and use digital platforms to groom their talents. She hoped that the GOAL program will be successful in making fruitful impact towards enabling the ST youth to become financially independent. The GOAL programme demonstrates affirmative action which will go a long way to reduce the gap between tribal and non-tribal youth and will enlist participation of tribal youth in national building.

Ministry of Tribal Affairs Launches Tribal Health & Nutrition Portal – ‘Swasthya’ (17th August, 2020)

Ministry of Tribal Affairs launched the Tribal Health and Nutrition Portal ‘Swasthya’ and opened National Overseas Portal and National Tribal Fellowship Portal. The e-portal on tribal health and nutrition named ‘Swasthya’, is a first of its kind e-portal, providing all health and nutrition related information of the tribal population of India in a single platform. Swasthya will also curate innovative practices, research briefs, case studies, and best practices collected from different parts of India to facilitate the exchange of evidence, expertise and experiences. The of Tribal Affairs has recognized Piramal Swasthya as the Centre of Excellence for Knowledge Management (CoE for KM) for Health and Nutrition. The CoE will constantly engage with the Ministry and provide inputs to drive evidence-based policy and decision-making pertaining to health and nutrition of the tribal population of India. The portal http://swasthya.tribal.gov.in is hosted on NIC cloud.

Online Performance Dashboard named “Empowering Tribals, Transforming India” launched

As a part of unwavering commitment of Government of India to realize Digital India goals, MoTA is an early adopter amongst Social Ministries as it moved towards a data-driven Governance model to achieve digital inclusion, financial inclusion, productivity improvement and social impact.  It is ensuring that administrative data forms the backbone of evidence-based decision making, outcome-oriented planning and service delivery to the beneficiaries. In this endeavor all schemes and initiatives of the Ministry of Tribal Affairs are digitalized through 20 scheme specific portals and applications which are integrated with the mother website of Ministry – www.tribal.nic.in, and with a comprehensive, interactive, dynamic Performance Dashboard https:// dashboard.tribal.gov.in.

Online Performance Dashboard named “Empowering Tribals, Transforming India”  provides updated and real-time data and status of 15 schemes and initiatives of the Ministry meant for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations. This is perhaps the  first such initiative of any social sector Ministry to put such a huge data in respect of all schemes and initiatives of the Ministry at one place.

Out of these, 5 are scholarship schemes of the Ministry where every year about 30 lakh underprivileged ST beneficiaries are given financial support of Rs 2500 cr for pursuing studies from 9th Class (Pre Matric) to doing Post Graduation courses PhD and Post Doctorate in India and Abroad. In respect of Centrally Sponsored Scheme like Post Matric and Pre Matric Scholarship, the data is shared by 31 States/UTs on DBT Portal before being displayed on dashboard.

The dashboard is part of Digital India Initiative to work towards empowering Scheduled Tribes and will bring efficiency and transparency in the system. The performance of Tribal Ministry and 37 other Ministries who are required to spend allocated amount of their budget for tribal welfare under STC Component as per mechanism framed by NITI Aayog can be seen on various parameters on dashboard. The dashboard will also be one-point link to all e-initiatives of the Ministry” The Dashboard has been developed by Centre of Excellence of Data Analytics (CEDA), organization under National Informatics Centre (NIC) with domain name (http://dashboard.tribal.gov.in).

Ministry of Tribal Affairs signs MoU with IIPA for Setting up National Institute of Tribal Research (NITR) at IIPA Campus, New Delhi (4th September, 2020)

Ministry of Tribal Affairs (MoTA) and Indian Institute of Public Administration (IIPA), New Delhi signed an MoU for setting up of National Institute of Tribal Research (NITR) at the IIPA campus, New Delhi. The proposed National Institute will be engaged in quality tribal research in collaboration with reputed government and non-governments NGOs spread over the country. The agreement was signed by Shri Deepak Khandekar, Secretary Ministry of Tribal Affairs and Shri S.N. Tripathi, DG, IIPA at the valedictory session of “National Tribal Research Conclave” organized by Centre of Excellence (CoE) for Tribal Affairs, (M/o Tribal Affairs), Indian Institute of Public Administration (IIPA), New Delhi.

The Ministry of Tribal Affairs designed workable models which provide end to end solution as part of action research to be implemented by policy initiatives. The Tribal Research Institutes (TRIs) have a very important role to play and their research should focus on drawing road map for future development. The Ministry is funding Tribal Research Institutions for research on various aspects of tribal life and culture but now intervention of research with policy should be emphasized in their research.

Shri Arjun Munda Launches ‘Capacity Building Programme for Scheduled Tribes PRI Representatives’ and ‘1000 Springs Initiatives’ in Bhubaneswar (27th February, 2020)

Shri Arjun Munda, Union Minister for Tribal Affairs launched the “Programme for Capacity Building of Scheduled Tribe Representatives in Local Self Governments” at a programme in Bhubaneshwar (Odisha) . He also launched “1000 Spring Initiatives” and an online portal on GIS-based Spring Atlas with hydrological and chemical properties of the Springs on the occasion. The Chief Minister of Odisha Shri Navin Patnaik and Smt. Renuka Singh Saruta, Minister of State for Tribal Affairs also graced the occasion. A short documentary film on FRA in Odisha (Odisha’s Journey in FRA) and FRA Atlas of Odisha were also released.

The '1000 Springs Initiative’ is a unique project of Springs Rejuvenation which aims at improving access to safe and adequate water for the tribal communities living in difficult and inaccessible part of rural areas in the country. It is an integrated solution around natural springs. It includes provision of infrastructure for piped water supply for drinking; provision of water for irrigation; community-led total sanitation initiatives; and provision for water for backyard nutrition gardens, generating sustainable livelihood opportunities for the tribal people. He hoped that the learning and suggestions coming out of the consultation will be used for further expansion of the project.

The module for capacity building programme has been developed in conjunction with United Nations Development Programme for the purpose. This module will be translated to the local languages for imparting training. Facilitators from within the tribal communities will be involved in the Capacity Building process so that information sought to be conveyed can be better done in the local idiom. The methodology of capacity building will include audio-visual aids, role play and a workshop approach. The programme will commence with the Training of Master Trainers followed by training of facilitators. It will be implemented in a thematic manner by prioritizing themes for the capacity building of PRI Representatives, which are required for the community. The programme will be implemented by State governments through respective SIRD&PR and TRIs.

EMRS/EMDBS holidays re-scheduled in view of contingent health situation due to COVID-19 (26th March, 2020)

The Ministry of Tribal Affairs wrote to Tribal Development Departments of all States with Eklavya Model Residential Schools for rescheduling of Holidays in Eklavya Model Residential Schools (EMRS) and Eklavya Model Day Boarding Schools (EMDBS) funded by the Ministry of Tribal Affairs in view of the fact that at  various places local administration have issued directions to take preventive measures including declaration of vacations to avoid spreading of infection due to Covid. In certain cases, the directions issued permits completion of the scheduled annual examinations.

Shri Arjun Munda wrote to Chief Ministers to advise State Nodal Agencies for undertaking procurement of minor forest produce at MSP in right earnest (8th April, 2020)

The Union Minister for Tribal Affairs Shri Arjun Munda had written a letter to the Chief Ministers of 15 States to advise the State Nodal Agencies for undertaking procurement of Minor Forest Produce (MFP) at Minimum Support Price (MSP) in right earnest. These States include Uttar Pradesh; Gujarat; Madhya Pradesh; Karnataka; Maharashtra; Assam; Andhra Pradesh; Kerala; Manipur; Nagaland; West Bengal; Rajasthan; Odisha; Chhattisgarh; and Jharkhand.

In the letter, he said that the current situation brought about due to outbreak of Covid-19 has posed an unprecedented challenge across the country. Almost all the States and UTs in India are affected by it, to varying degrees. Poor and marginalized including the tribal communities are most vulnerable in this situation. This being the peak season for collection and harvest of Minor Forest Produce (MFP)/Non Timber Forest Produce (NTFP) in many regions makes it imperative to initiate certain proactive measures to ensure the wellbeing of the tribal communities and their economy based on MFP/NTFP by providing them safety and ensuring their livelihoods.

Shri Arjun Munda launches ‘Goal’ programme of M/o Tribal Affairs for Digital Skilling of Tribal Youth across India in partnership with Facebook(15th May, 2020)

Union Minister for Tribal Affairs Shri Arjun Munda launched the “GOAL (Going Online As Leaders)” programme of the Ministry of Tribal Affairs (MoTA) in partnership with Facebook at a Webinar in New Delhi on 15th May, 2020. The GOAL programme is designed to provide mentorship to tribal youth through digital mode. The digitally enabled program envisages to act as a catalyst to explore hidden talents of the tribal youth, which will help in their personal development as well as contribute to all-round upliftment of their society. The link of the Webinar is as follows : https://www.facebook.com/arjunmunda/videos/172233970820550/UzpfSTY1Nzg2NDIxNzU5NjMzNDoyODg4MDg1MTAxMjQwODkw/

M/o Tribal Affairs receives SKOCH Gold Award for its “Empowerment of Tribals through IT enabled Scholarship Schemes” (31st July, 2020)

Ministry of Tribal Affairs (MoTA) has received SKOCH Gold Award for its “Empowerment of Tribals through IT enabled Scholarship Schemes” project of Scholarship Division of the Ministry. The 66th SKOCH 2020 Competition was entitled “INDIA RESPONDS TO COVID THROUGH DIGITAL GOVERNANCE” and MoTA chose to participate in DIGITAL INDIA & E-GOVERNANCE - 2020 Competition and the awards were announced yesterday i.e. on 30th July, 2020. This project is a step towards achieving unwavering commitment of Government of India towards realizing the dreams of Digital India and bringing transparency as well as ease in the delivery of services. To assimilate with the larger vision of ‘Digital India’ and to realize the cherished goal of e-governance, MoTA has integrated all 5 Scholarship Schemes with DBT Portal under the guidance of DBT Mission. The initiative was rolled out on 12th June 2019 by the Union Minister for Tribal Affairs Shri Arjun Munda and MoS Ms. Renuka Singh Saruta.

M/o Tribal Affairs Setting up Tribal Freedom Fighters’ Museums to give due Recognition to Sacrifices and Contribution to Country’s Freedom Struggle by Tribal People (11th August, 2020)

Ministry of Tribal Affairs is developing “Tribal Freedom Fighters’ Museums” dedicated to the contributions of the Tribal people in India to the freedom struggle pursuant to Prime Minister’s announcement in his Independence Day Speech on15thAugust 2016, regarding setting up of tribal freedom fighters’ museums. The Prime Minister in his address said, “The Government desires and is planning permanent museums in the States where Tribals lived, struggled against the British and refused to be bowed down. The Government will work to make such museums in different States so that the coming generations may know how our tribals were far ahead in making sacrifices”.

As per the directions of the Prime Minister, all the museums will have strong usage of technologies like Virtual Reality (VR), Augmented Reality (AR), 3D/7D holographic projections etc.

These museums will trace the history along the trails, along which the tribal people in hills and forests fought for their right to live and will, therefore, combine ex situ display with in situ conservation, regeneration initiatives. These will be museums, objects as well as ideas. These will demonstrate the way tribal struggles for protecting their custodial concerns for the biological and cultural diversity of the country, have helped in nation building.

Joint Communique Signed between M/O Tribal Affairs and M/O Food Processing Industries Defining Convergence Mechanism in Implementation of PMFME Scheme for Micro Food Processing Industries (18th December, 2020)

A “Joint Communique” was signed by Shri Deepak Khandekar, Secretary, Ministry of Tribal Affairs and Smt Pushpa Subrahmanyam, Secretary, Ministry of Minister for Food Processing Industries today in the presence of Shri Narendra Singh Tomar, Union Minister for Food Processing; Shri Arjun Munda, Minister of Tribal Affairs and Shri Rameshwar Teli, Minister of State for Food Processing. The Joint communique addressed to States clearly defining Convergence mechanism in implementation of Pradhan Mantri Formalization of Micro Food Processing Enterprises (PMFME) Scheme of MoFPI and role of both Central Ministries and their respective departments at State level.

Success Story of Ice Stupa: Unique Initiative under Centre of Excellence Project

Resolving Water Problems in 26 villages through Ice Stupas in Ladakh in partnership with SECMOL. Ladakh is characterised by distinct geographical and climatic features. It is known as a cold desert.  With reducing precipitation, increasing average temperatures, and reduced glaciers to water the villages , some Himalayan villages are now slowly turning into ghost towns with abandoned but habitable houses and wasted agricultural land. This gives rise to three major modern issues of Ladakh relating to water scarcity, low indoor temperatures in buildings, and a shift from the original agrarian-based economy resulting into youth migration.

A unique way to solve water problems and livelihood problems through Action Research project in Ladakh has been initiated with SECMOL, Ladakh.  26 Ice stupas were built by Villagers and on an average 3 lakh liter water was stored in each such stupa for the winter season of 2019-20.  Through this project, anticipating villagers were able to conserve about 75 lakh litres of water during winters and eco-tourism activities like “1st Ladakh Ice Climbing Festival” gave opportunity to the local youth to be indulged in eco-entrepreneurial ventures.

The 1st , 2nd and 3rd biggest Ice Stupas from the villages of Igoo, Tarchit and Phyang. The last image shows a stack of Ice Stupas built in Gangles valley during an Ice Valley prototype project to conserve and later supply water for downstream villages and ultimately Leh city.

It will help in rehabilitation of abandoned villages and can change economy of the village by solving water problem, plantation of trees and irrigation.  The stupas are source of tourist attraction and plantation of trees through community participation and engaging local in Home Stay project will help in their economic upliftment. In 2 years, Ice Stupas would be established in 50 villages for drinking water and water irrigation required for agriculture and would go a long way in changing economy of the area.

31-Jul-2020: M/o Tribal Affairs receives SKOCH Gold Award for its “Empowerment of Tribals through IT enabled Scholarship Schemes”

Ministry of Tribal Affairs (MoTA) has received SKOCH Gold Award for its “Empowerment of Tribals through IT enabled Scholarship Schemes” project of Scholarship Division of the Ministry. The 66th SKOCH 2020 Competition was entitled “INDIA RESPONDS TO COVID THROUGH DIGITAL GOVERNANCE” and MoTA chose to participate in DIGITAL INDIA & E-GOVERNANCE - 2020 Competition and the awards were announced yesterday i.e. on 30th July, 2020. This project is a step towards achieving unwavering commitment of Government of India towards realizing the dreams of Digital India and bringing transparency as well as ease in the delivery of services. To assimilate with the larger vision of ‘Digital India’ and to realize the cherished goal of e-governance, MoTA has integrated all 5 Scholarship Schemes with DBT Portal under the guidance of DBT Mission. The initiative was rolled out on 12th June 2019 by the Union Minister for Tribal Affairs Shri Arjun Munda and MoS Ms. Renuka Singh Sarota.

During 2019-20, under 5 Scholarship schemes, about Rs. 2500 Cr were directly transferred to student’s Bank accounts through DBT to approximately 30 lakh students in 31 States and UTs.  The portal provides facility to States for data sharing through Web services and States can up-load proposal, UCs and SOE online. This has brought paradigm shift from Paper based UC monitoring mandated for budget release to data enabled budget release and monitoring process. This has considerably reduced scholarship release time and now it is possible to release scholarship in the same academic year in which admission is taken. MoTA has also entered into CEDA (Centre for Data Analytics), which analyzes and prepares State Wise Data Analysis Reports, which helps in data based planning. In Fellowship Scheme run by Ministry for doing PhD, all 331 Universities have been integrated with the portal thereby enabling verification application online.  Portal is also integrated with Digi-Locker developed by MeitY so that documents are directly fetched and saves verification time.

The portal has facility to upload documents which are not on Digi-Locker.  Each of these portals have Grievance Redressal and Communication Mechanism and all stake holders, Universities, Bank, PFMS, Students and States can upload queries, grievances and upload documents, which has made grievance redressal mechanism easy, transparent and fast.  KPMG, as part of its mandate for NITI Aayog, has carried out a national evaluation of Centrally Sponsored Schemes focused on social inclusion, in which it has recognized the Direct Benefit  Transfer (DBT) Portal  of Ministry of Tribal Affairs as a best practice  in e-governance which has brought about greater transparency, accountability and radical improvement in service delivery to Scheduled Tribe students. In order to have connect with 7000 students studying in Top 246 Institutions across India and 4000 Students doing PhD in more than 300 Universities, MoTA has conceptualized unique concept of  Talent pool for empowering ST scholars which can be connected to various research projects run by TRIs and States.

The project is implemented by IIPA and would help in understanding the aspirations of tribal youth and help in realizing their cherished dream to develop as entrepreneurs, researchers and flag-bearers of schemes of Government of India meant for welfare for STs. While receiving Award, Dr Naval Jit Kapoor, Joint Secretary, MoTA said that DBT is a silent revolution which has changed the governance mechanism in the country and the projects of such scale are possible only because of vision of our Prime Minister and constant guidance of DBT Mission, NITI Aayog and support of Union Minister, Secretary, entire MoTA team, who have worked very hard during lockdown to ensure that the tribals get their dues in time.