19-Jul-2022: The second phase of the GOAL Programme (GOAL 2.0) was launched on 28thJune, 2022 with an aim to digitally upskill tribal youth

GOAL (Going Online as Leaders) is a joint initiative of Ministry of Tribal Affairs and Meta (formerly Facebook), which aims at digital empowerment of tribal youth and women through concept of mentor and mentee.

The first phase of the GOAL programme was launched as a pilot project in May 2020 and it was completed by Dec 2021. The mentees in the first-phase were provided with 40+ hours of training across three course pillars: (1) Communication & Life Skills; (2) Enabling Digital Presence, and (3) Leadership & Entrepreneurship. The programme is fully funded by Meta (Facebook India). As part of the phase 1 of GOAL program, 176 tribal youth from 23 States across India were selected through an online application process.  The mentees were also given a smart phone and Internet Connectivity by Facebook.

The second phase of the GOAL Programme (GOAL 2.0) was launched on 28thJune, 2022 with an aim to digitally upskill tribal youth by promoting entrepreneurship and opening up opportunities for them using digital technology.

In Phase-I, the digital mentorship was provided online by attaching one mentor to 2 mentees.  Based on learnings from Phase-I, there is change in the design in Phase-II.  Rather than inviting applications to become mentees under the scheme, Goal 2 program will be open to all people from tribal communities. The program aims to upskill and digitally enable tribal youth via Facebook live sessions and Meta Business Coach, a digital learning tool. There will be special focus on more than 10 lakh members of 50000 Vandhan Self Help Groups.  They will be digitally trained with regard to market demand, packaging, branding and marketing of their products.  The GOAL 2 will enable maximum participation and percolation of benefits of the training within the tribal youth with provision of Chatbot, need based on line sessions from Industry experts in different fields as per requirements from the mentees.

The programme is fully funded by Meta (Facebook India) and Ministry of Tribal Affairs has not incurred any expenditure or provided any funds for implementation of the program.

Ministry of Tribal Affairs in coordination with Ministry of IT and Electronics, will be providing 6 digital classes in each of the 175 EMRS schools selected under the program.  The project is being implemented by ERNET, which is an autonomous organization under MeitY through STC funds available with MeitY and 10% funding is being done by NESTS. 

Under Skill India Mission, Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) is implementing its flagship scheme Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY). Under PMKVY 3.0, focus has also been given for skilling on digital technology and Industry 4.0. Sector Skill Councils (SSCs) have also created job roles on new and emerging digital technologies and industry 4.0 skills like Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Internet of Things (IoT).  MSDE has budget of Rs. 203 cr under Schedule Tribe Component (STC) for various programs related to skill development of tribals during 2022-23. 

Further, National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) under the aegis of the MSDE has initiated online skilling through eSkill India portal. The platform offers learning opportunities on emerging technologies like cybersecurity, blockchain, artificial intelligence and machine learning, predictive modelling, statistical business analytics, cloud and Internet of Things along with professional skills like design thinking, project management and digital marketing.

There is no separate fund allotment for training of Digital Skills under the PMKVY scheme. Under Centrally Sponsored State Managed (CSSM) component of PMKVY scheme, there is a provision of State/UT-wise allocation of funds.

Further, Department of School Education and Literacy, Ministry of Education is implementing the initiative of Vocationalisation of School Education under the umbrella of the Centrally Sponsored Scheme of ‘Samagra Shiksha’. Under Vocational Education component of ‘Samagra Shiksha’, NSQF compliant vocational courses are offered to the school students including tribal Students from class 9th to 12th in the schools covered under the scheme. It consists of Communication Skills, Self-Management Skills, Information and Communication Technology Skills, Entrepreneurship Skills and Green Skills.

6-Jun-2022: Shri Amit Shah to inaugurate the National Tribal Research Institute in New Delhi tomorrow

As a part of the Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav celebration by the Ministry of Tribal Affairs, the Minister of Home Affairs and Cooperation, Shri Amit Shah will inaugurate the National Tribal Research Institute on the 7th of June 2022 in New Delhi.

The NTRI will be a premier national level institute and become the nerve-center of tribal concerns, issues and matters in academic, executive and legislative fields.  It will collaborate and network with reputed research institutes, Universities, organizations as well as academic bodies and resource Centres.  It will Monitor projects of Tribal Research Institutes(TRIs), Centres of Excellence (CoEs), research scholars of NFS and set up norms for improvement in the quality of research and training. Its other activities would be to provide policy inputs to the Ministry of Tribal Affairs as well as State Welfare Departments, Design studies and programs that improve or support socio-economic aspects of tribal lifestyles, creating and maintenance of Database of PMAAGY, providing guidelines in Setting and running of Tribal Museums and Showcasing rich tribal cultural heritage of India under one umbrella.

 Minister of Tribal Affairs, Shri Arjun Munda, other cabinet and state Ministers including Minister of Law and Justice, Sh. Kiren Rijiju; MoS Tribal Affairs Smt Renuka Singh Saruta; MoS Tribal affairs Sh. Bishweswar Tudu; MoS Minority affairs Sh. John Barla and MoS Rural Development and Steel Sh. Faggan Singh Kulaste and other dignitaries will grace the occasion.

An exhibition showcasing the achievements of Tribal Affairs Ministry under the leadership of the Prime Minister will be displayed. More than 100 tribal artisans and tribal dance troupes across country will show case their indigenous products and performances.

The event will be live-streamed on Facebook, Twitter and other social media platforms. The exhibition will be open for the public from 2 PM onwards and at 6 pm the tribal troupes will give dance performance.

8-Mar-2021: Preservation and Documentation of Threatened Tribal Languages

The endorsement of endangered tribal languages through innovative and cultural programmes does instill a sense of pride among tribal communities. Under the scheme of ‘Support to Tribal Research Institute (TRIs), Ministry of Tribal Affairs extends support to TRIs for carrying out various research & documentation activities including programs for documentation of tribal languages, dialects, art, culture, dance, music and development of bilingual Primers. Accordingly, TRIs are conducting documentation and preservation of endangered tribal languages through preparation of primers, dictionaries and organization of cultural programmes.

Mother Tongue Based Multi-Lingual Education (MTBMLE), an innovative pedagogic initiative which plays a key role in preserving tribal languages is adopted in Andhra Pradesh. This approach bridges gap between home and school languages which enable better learning.

Further, under the component “Financial Assistance for support to Centres of Excellence” of the scheme "Tribal Festival, Research, information and Mass Education", financial assistance is provided to repute Institution for carrying out research study programmes including documentation of tribal languages. In this regard, Ministry has sanctioned  projects to Bhasha Research and Publication Centre during 2018-19 and 2019-20 which inter- alia covered activity of identification and documentation of threatened/dying languages. The organization has carried out documentation of Korku, Nihali, Kolami, Vadi, Halpati, Dungra Bhili, Dhavadi, Dhatti, Thali, Nahal and Seheriya languages.

The Ministry has also recently developed a digital document repository (repository.tribal.gov.in) where TRIs have now started uploading all the activities, document, research reports, publications, which is available in public domain.

3-Sep-2020: Shri Arjun Munda inaugurates  ‘2 Days’ National Tribal Research Conclave’ being held virtually

Union Minister for Tribal Affairs Shri Arjun Munda has said that the Ministry of Tribal affairs is funding  26 Tribal Research Institutes (TRIs) for research under Grant to TRIs and is engaged in quality research in collaboration with reputed Government and Non-Government Organizations (NGOs) spread over the country. National Institute for Tribal research is being set up in partnership with IIPA at the IIPA premises in Delhi, the Minister said. These partner organizations are designated as Centres of Excellence. Addressing at   the inaugural 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 here today, he said that his Ministry along with such partner organisations design workable models which provide end to end solution, like problem identification, finding solution and execution of the project as part of Action research which can be implemented by policy initiatives.

Shri Munda said that we have to use technology to create path towards progress for tribals. Research by Tribal Research Institutes (TRIs) should become the base to take our tribal developments programs forward. He said that Tribal Research Institutes have a very important role to play and their Research should help to draw road map for future development.

He emphasized that ‘Research for Policy’ should be guiding principle to help identify the gaps between policy and actual implementation. Tribal Research should focus not only on the anthropological aspects of tribal life and culture but should also focus on the progress made by them. Research by TRIs should help to achieve the goal “Mera Van Mera Dhan, Mera Udhyam” since forests are not only important for environment but play a major role in tribal livelihoods. 

Shri Munda opined that our tribal development schemes are very dynamic. We have passed through many hurdles in the past but now with the help of new technology, we are moving ahead. How to proceed on Development Plan for tribals, it has to be Research based. Estimation of beneficiaries is the most important aspect and all the benefits should reach to all.

He expressed his concern that there is a mismatch between Research for Policy and the Constitutional concept of Tribal administration. We could not do tribal research keeping in view the development plans. We have missed the intervention of Research in  policy, the Minister added.

Shri Munda suggested that the proposed National Institute for Tribal Research (NITR) should also have an educational wing to educate students on the tribal development.

In his address, Shri Deepak Khandekar, Secretary, Ministry of Tribal Affairs said that earlier Tribal Research work was being done as a sponsored program in the Ministry of Tribal Affairs but now it is being run in a mission mode. There are around 700 Scheduled Tribe Communities and 75 PVTGs in our country. We have been focusing on what they have done in the past, but now our focus is on what they aspire to do. Ministry of Tribal Affairs wants to do and promote research on all aspects of their lives and cultures. Ministry is not short of Budget but it wants committed persons and organizations to carry out research. IIPA is one of such committed organization, which has willingly come forward to do research on tribal lives. He said that today’s Conclave has more than 100 participants from all over the country including Tribal Affairs Ministers from many States and I thank IIPA for such arrangement.

In his address, Shri S.N. Tripathi, DG, IIPA gave an overview on the role of IIPA in tribal development. IIPA is working on Tribal Talent Pool and on Strengthening of TRIs in partnership with Ministry of Tribal Affairs and 1st such workshop was organized by IIPA in January 2020. The present 2 days review workshop is reviewing the progress on outcome of these projects and the best practices can be show cased to all stakeholders.   10 research partners are sharing their projects in this conclave.  The road map of National Tribal Research Institute (NTRI) is also being shared.  Ministry of Tribal Affairs is also coming up with NTRI in collaboration with IIPA.

Earlier, Shri Navaljit Kapoor, Joint Secretary, MoTA gave a detailed presentation on various ongoing and forthcoming schemes of Ministry of Tribal Development.

Ministry of Tribal Affairs is funding to 26 TRIs for research under Grant to TRIs and is engaged in quality research in collaboration with reputed Government and Non-Government Organizations spread over country.  These partner organizations are designated as Centre of Excellences. MoTA along with such partner organisations designs workable models which provide end to end solution, like problem identification, finding solution and execution of the project as part of Action research which can be implemented by policy initiatives. The themes are Health, Livelihood, education, digitalisation, water conservation, data sciences and development models for aspiration and model villages.

Centre for Excellence for Data Analytics (CEDA) is analysing tribal data for various schemes and has developed “Performance and Monitoring Dashboard” (dashboard.tribal.gov.in) which was recently launched by Shri Amitabh Kant, CEO NITI Aayog and Sh. Ramesh Chand, Member NITI Aayog.   Bharat Rural Livelihood Foundation, an autonomous organisation under RD Ministry is working on gradation of NGOs and improve monitoring for NGO projects.   Piramal Foundation is working for creation of a consolidated health and nutrition data repository for tribal population and for providing data analytics support to facilitate evidence-based policy making and implementation strategies, and has launched Swasthya portal (swasthya.tribal.gov.in).TERI is engaged with MoTA on developing an economical model for Community Rights under Forest Rights Act.  IIT Delhi has been given a project for development of a Data driven framework by using Data analytics to identify the villages that are having maximum socio-economic gaps, so that data drive planning can be made.

Likewise NIT Rourkela, Indian Institute of Forest management, NIRTH, JNU, Jamia Milia Islamia, Bhasa, BAIF, FICCI, ASSOCHAM are working on livelihood and Health projects in MP, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Jharkhand and other States.  Many other Civil Societies and Corporates have offered partnership with MoTA to work together for welfare of tribal in areas of Livelihood, Education, Health, Water Conservation, Organic Farming, Skill Development, Tribal Culture & Festivals and are keen to become part of “Affirmative Action”. 

Ministry of Tribal Affairs has taken unique initiative in solving water problems and Livelihood problems of the area.  Action Research project has been given to SECMOL-LADAKH, wherein they would establish Ice stupa in 50 villages and which will solve problem of drinking water and water required for agriculture.  SECMOL will also plant trees through community participation.   UNDP is working on 1000 springs project with community participation to revive drying streams (https://thespringsportal.org/). 

Himmotthan Society, Uttarakhand, which is managed by Tata Foundation has been given project on sheep rearing, Packaging of Apricot and Peas as these are perishable items and locals do not get remunerative price for their products.

Tribal Healers and Tribal medicines:   Tribals have vast traditional knowledge of treating diseases with locally available medicinal plants.  In order to protect this knowledge, which is fast vanishing, Patanjali Research Institute has been given pilot project for research on Tribal Healers and Medicinal Plants in Uttarakhand.  Similar projects have been given to AIIMS-Jodhpur, Parvara Institute of Medical Science and Mata Amritamai Institute for Rajasthan, Maharashtra and Kerala.

Through CII, FICCI, ASSOCHAM many Corporates and NGOs have also shown interest to support and act as mentor for such talent and offered to give Internships to interested Scholars. Many Civil Societies and Corporates have also offered partnership with MoTA to work together for welfare of tribal in areas of Livelihood, Talent pool, Tribal healers, Tribal Culture & Festivals and are keen to become part of "Affirmative Action". Philips India has offered scholarship to 30 medical students who could not be accommodated under the Top Class Scholarship scheme of MoTA. GOAL (Going Online as Leaders) is also one such initiative of Facebook, which is funded by Facebook and various organizations working with Ministry of Tribal Affairs are the Institutional partners in this project.