ADVERTISEMENTS:
After reading this article you will learn about different strategies for the development of various social groups in India:- 1. Women 2. Children 3. Socially Disadvantaged Groups.
Development of Women:
Women constitute 48 per cent of the total population of the country. They suffer many disadvantages as compared to men in literacy rates, labour participation rates and earnings. The development of women has been receiving attention of the Government of India from the First Plan. But it was treated as a subject of ‘welfare’ and clubbed together with the welfare of the disadvantaged groups like destitute, disabled, aged, etc.
In 1953, the Central Social Welfare Board was set up which acts as an Apex Body at the centre to promote voluntary action at various levels, especially at the grassroots, to take up welfare-related activities for women and children. The Second to Fifth Plans continued this strategy besides giving priority to women’s education, and launching measures to improve maternal and child health services, supplementary feeding for children and expectant and nursing mothers.
ADVERTISEMENTS:
In the Sixth Plan, there was a shift in the approach from ‘welfare’ to ‘development’ of women. The Sixth Plan adopted a multi-disciplinary approach with a special emphasis on the three core sectors of health, education and employment. The Seventh Plan stressed on raising their economic and social status and bringing them into the mainstream of national development.
One of the significant step in this direction was to identify/promote the ‘Beneficiary Oriented Schemes’ in various developmental sectors which extended direct benefits to women. The strategy also included the generation of both skilled and unskilled employment through proper education and vocational training.
The Eighth Plan ensured that the benefits of development to women should flow from other development sectors and enable women to function as equal partners and participants in the development process.
The Ninth Plan made two important changes in the strategy of development of women. The first was the ‘Empowerment of Women -‘ Its aim was to create an enabling environment where women could freely exercise their rights both within and outside home, and are equal partners along with men.
ADVERTISEMENTS:
The second was the convergence of existing services available in both women-specific and women, related sectors. To this effect, a special strategy of ‘Women’s Component Plan’ was adopted through which not less than 30 per cent of funds/benefits now flow to women from all the general development sectors.
For social and economic development of women, the centre has set up the Department of Women and Child Development which has been implementing the following schemes:
1. Swavamsidha is an integrated schemes for the development and empowerment of women through self-help groups. It covers services, access to micro-credit and promotes micro-enterprises.
2. Swa-shakti Project aims at increasing women’s access to resources for better quality of life through the use of time reduction devices, by providing health and education services and by imparting skills to women for income generating activities.
3. Support to Training and Employment Programme for Women. It provides new skills and knowledge to poor assetless women in agriculture, animal husbandry, dairying, fisheries, sericulture, handlooms, handicrafts and khadi and village industry sectors of employment.
4. Swavlamban. This scheme provides training and skills to women to enable them to obtain employment or become self-employed. The trades in which training is imparted include computer programming, medical transcription, electronic assembling, electronics, radio and TV repairs, garment making, handloom weaving, handicrafts, secretarial practice, embroidery and community health.
5. Creche/Day Care Centres for the Children of Working and Ailing Mothers. It aims at providing day care services to children (0-5 years) of parents whose income does not exceed Rs. 1,800 per month. The services include sleeping and day care facilities, recreation, supplementary nutrition, immunisation and medicine.
6. Hostels for Working Women. Under this scheme, financial assistance is provided for construction and expansion of hostel buildings for working women. It also includes provisions for safe and affordable accommodation to working women (single or married), those getting training for employment and girl students studying in professional courses.
7. Swadhar. This scheme provides integrated services to women without support from their families such as widows living at Vrindavan and Kashi; prisoners released from jail; survivors of natural calamities; women/girls rescued from brothels and other places; victims of sexual crimes, etc. The scheme includes such services as food, clothing, shelter, health care, counselling and legal aid and rehabilitation through education awareness, skill formation and behavioural training.
ADVERTISEMENTS:
8. RashtriyaMahilaKosh. The National Credit Fund for Women is meant to facilitate credit support or micro-finance to poor women to start such income generating schemes as agriculture, dairying, shop keeping, vending and handicrafts.
Women Empowerment:
To empower women as agents of social change and development, the Ninth Plan adopted the strategy of women’s component plan under which not less than 30 per cent of funds/benefits were ear marked in all the women related sectors, meant for women specific programmes. To achieve this target, the seven schemes listed above are being implemented by the centre and the states in India.
In 2001, the Government adopted the National Policy for Empowerment of Women with the objective of ensuring women their rightful place in society by empowering them as agents of socioe-conomic change and development. Based on the prescriptions of the National policy, the Tenth Plan has adopted a sector specific 3-fold strategy for empowerment of women.
They include social empowerment, economic empowerment and gender justice which are explained as under:
1. Social Empowerment:
Social empowerment is designed to create an enabling environment adopting various affirmative policies and programmes for development policies and programmes for development of women. It aims at providing them easy and equal access to all the basic minimum services so as to enable them to realise their full potentials.
For this, the following measures will be taken up:
(i) Providing basic minimum services of primary health care and family welfare through universalising RCH services.
(ii) Tackling both macro- and micro-nutrient deficiencies through nutrition supplementary feeding programmes with necessary support services like health check-ups, immunisation, health and nutrition education and nutrition awareness, etc.
(iii) Providing easy and equal access to free education for women and girls at all levels and in technical and vocational education and training in up-coming and job-oriented trades.
(iv) Extending the existing network of regional vocational training centres and women’s industrial training institutes with residential facilities to all the states and their districts.
(v) Increasing enrolment and retention rates and reducing drop-out rates by expanding support services through mid-day meals, hostels and incentives like free supply of uniforms, text books, transport charges, etc.
2. Economic Empowerment:
Economic empowerment is designed to ensure provision of training, employment and income generating activities with both forward and backward linkages with the objective of making all women economically independent and self-reliant.
To achieve this, the Following steps will be undertaken:
(i) Organising women into self-help groups under various poverty alleviation programmes such .as Swarnajayanti Gram Swarozgar Yojna (SGSY), Swarn Jayanti Shahn Rozgar Yojana (SJSRY), Rashtriya Mahila Kosh (RMK), Support for Training and Employment Programme (STEP), etc.
(ii) Ensuring that women in the informal sector are given special attention with regard to improving their working conditions.
(iii) Ensuring that the benefits of training and extension in agriculture and its allied activities of horticulture, small animal husbandry, poultry, fisheries, etc. reach women in proportion to their numbers.
(iv) Ensuring that the employers fulfil their legal obligations towards women workers in extending child care facilities, maternity benefits, special leave, etc.
(v) Increasing access to credit for women through micro-financial institutions catering to women.
(vi) Ensuring at least 30 per cent of reservation for women in services.
3. Gender Justice:
It requires elimination of all types of discrimination against women and girl child in order to enable women to enjoy not only de- jure but also de-facto rights and fundamental freedom on par with men in political, economic, social, civil, cultural, etc. spheres. This requires legislative measures and action both on the part of the centre and the states.
Development of Children:
During the 1950s and 1960s, the major responsibility of developing childcare services rested with this voluntary sector having a welfare-oriented approach. The 1970s marked a shift in this approach to children from ‘welfare’ to ‘development’.
Consequently, child-welfare services were expanded to the sectors of health, education, nutrition, etc. Important measures included Maternal and Child Health (MCH) services, primary education, supplementary feeding for pre-school and school-going children, etc.
It was during this period that a National Policy for Children was adopted in 1974 and Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) programme was launched in 1975 with an integrated approach to extend a package of 6 basic services relating to health check-ups, immunisation, referral services, supplementary feeding, pre-school education and health and nutrition education for children upto 6 years and expectant and nursing mothers through a single-window delivery at village levels.
The 1980s saw an effective consolidation and expansion of programmes started in the earlier plans. The National Health Policy was adopted in 1983 which set certain specific targets like bringing down the high rates of infant and child mortality through the universalisation of immunisation and other MCH services.
The National Policy on Education of 1986 emphasised universal enrolment and retention of children in schools and thus to reduce the high rate of school drop-outs, especially amongst the girl children.
The Juvenile Justice Act was enacted in 1986 to deal effectively with the problems of juvenile delinquency/vagrancy and to provide a framework for handling such children This has been revised and re-titled as Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection) Act, 2000. The Child Labour Prohibition and Regulation Act. 1986 was followed up by the adoption of a National Policy on Child Labour in 1987.
During the 1990s, inter-sectoral efforts in terms of both policies and programmes towards the holistic development of children, especially the young child, have been put into action in the three core sectors of health, nutrition and education.
To supplement and complement these efforts, the Department of Women and Child Development has been adopting/launching, various policies and programmes from time to time. The Ninth Plan continued its efforts towards universalising the early childhood development services with a special focus on the young and the girl child.
Health:
In the field of health, maternal and child health services have been receiving highest priority as per the National Health Policy of 1983. The scope of the erstwhile programme of Child Survival and Safe Motherhood has been further widened into a comprehensive programme of RCH with a special thrust on child survival and other related measures.
Further, the Government has launched a School Health Programme aiming at screening of all primary school children for common ailments, referral services for children for full check-up and treatment and creating awareness amongst the community and teachers about the health problems of children.
Nutrition:
In the field of nutrition, children below 6 years and expectant and nursing mothers receive the highest priority in line with the provisions of the National Nutrition Policy (1993) and the National Plan of Action on Nutrition (1995). Under the National Programme of Nutritional Support to Primary Education, school children in the age-group of 6-14 years are provided mid-day meals.
Education:
In the field of education, the National Policy on Education of 1986 as revised in 1992 and the Programme of Action of 1992 have been making special efforts for Universal Primary Education. As a result, 94 per cent of the rural population of the country has schooling facilities within one km and in the upper primary stage, facilities are available to 84 per cent of rural population within 3 km.
Two education schemes, Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan and Mahila Samakha aim at providing elementary education to all children in the age-group of 6-14 by 2010. In all these measures, the girl child and children belonging to SCs and STs are given priority and special incentives like scholarships, free books, uniforms, mid-day meals, etc.
ICDS Programme:
The Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) launched in 1975 is a countrywide single programme which aims at promoting the development of children upto 6 years of age with a special focus on children upto 2 years, especially, the girl child and expectant and nursing mothers. This is done through a package of such six basic services as health check-up, immunisation, referral services, supplementary nutrition, pre-school education and health and nutritional education through a single window delivery.
As a part of the ICDS programme, Kishori Shakti Yojana was launched in 2000-01 for adolescent girls in the age group of 11-18 years. The scheme aims at breaking the inter-generational life cycle of nutritional and gender disadvantages and providing a supportive environment for self-development by promoting awareness on health, hygiene, nutrition, home management, child care and training to improve/upgrade vocational skills.
A National Creche Fund was set up in 1993-94 as a corpus fund. It is meant to meet the growing need for opening more creches. Assistance under the scheme is being made available to registered voluntary organisations/Mahila Mandals to convert existing Anganwadi Centres into Anganwadi-Cum-Creche Centres out of the interest earned from the corpus fund.
Development of Socially Disadvantaged Groups:
There are a number of socially disadvantaged groups like Scheduled Castes (SCs), Other backward Classes (OBCs), and the Minorities in India that continue to lag behind the rest of the society. They constitute a sizable proportion of the country’s population with the SCs (179.7 million) accounting for 17.5 per cent, Minorities (188.9 million) representing 18.4 per cent, Scheduled Tribes (STs) (88.8 million) 8.6 per cent of the total population in 2001.
The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment is the nodal agency which implements the programmes for ensuring social justice and empowerment to these groups. The Ministry also undertakes programmes for persons with disabilities, victims of alcoholism and drug abuse, children in need of care and protection and welfare of the aged.
The following strategies have been adopted for the development of these groups :
1. Scheduled Castes:
For economic development of SCs, two income generating schemes have been set up:
(i) National Scheduled Castes Finance and Development Corporation (NSCFDC) and
(ii) National SafaiKarmachari Finance and Development Corporation (NSCFDC).
Special Central Assistance (SCA) for the Special Component Plan is a major scheme for the welfare and development of the SCs. Under the scheme, 100 per cent central assistance is extended to supplement the efforts of the states/UTs for ensuring rapid socio-economic development among SCs, especially those living below the poverty line.
As education is the prime requirement for the social empowerment of SCs, efforts are being made to arrest the school dropout rates and improve enrolment and retention rates through the provision of such incentives as scholarships, hostel facilities and other educational aids and supports.
Under the Centrally Sponsored Scheme of Post Matric Scholarships to SC students, allowances are enhanced and the income ceiling is revised from time to time to cover more number of students.
The scheme of Pre-Matric scholarships for children of families engaged in unclean occupation is being implemented with the objective to promote education and wean these children away from these occupations. The rate of scholarships for day scholars and hostellers, and ad hoc grants to the students at the beginning for the academic year are also revised.
To reduce the high school dropout rates and increase retention rates amongst the SCs, OBCs and Minorities, a major support service in the form of hostel facilities have been provided to boys and girls belonging to these groups.
2. Backward Classes:
For the economic development of BCs, the National Backward Classes Finance and Development Corporation (NBCFDC) has been set up as income generating scheme. Towards the socio-economic development of BCs, the NBFCDC has launched a scheme “New Swarnima” for women belonging to backward classes living below the poverty line.
The Ministry provides central assistance to state governments/UT administration for educational development of BCs. NBFCDC has also launched a new scheme “Swayam Saksham Scheme” for economic development of BCs in 2003-04.
3. Minorities:
A large number of the minority communities is engaged in traditional arts and crafts like handlooms, handicrafts, glass works, and metal works. Priority has been given for up-gradation of the technical know-how of these trades. The National Minorities Development and Finance Corporation (NMDFC) has been extending financial assistance and other technical support to minority entrepreneurs for welfare and development activities of minorities.
A scheme “Mahila Samridhi Yojana” for providing micro-financing for training to women belonging to the minority communities in tailoring, knitting, embroidery and allied trades has been launched by NMDFC. The Corporation has also introduced a scheme for providing educational loans upto Rs. 75,000 at concessional rates to students for pursuing job oriented, professional and technical courses.
4. Scheduled Tribes:
Scheduled Tribes (STs) are provided financial assistance under the scheme of Special Central Assistance (SCA) to Tribal Sub-Plan (TSP) focusing on income generating activities in the tribal areas and creating critical infrastructure incidental thereto. During 2003-04, guidelines for funding under SCA to TSP were revised with a view to meet the changing needs of the tribal and to extend financial benefits to not only individual beneficiaries who are below poverty line but also to SHGs especially focusing on tribal women.
Besides this, grant- in-aid is also being provided under Article 275(1) of the Constitution to the states not only towards raising the level of administration in the Scheduled Areas at par with the rest of the states but also to take special projects for the welfare and development of STs.
The Annual Plan for 2003-04 emphasized the social empowerment of STs through the support of educational and hostel schemes for improving the enrolment ratio as-well as retention of ST students. These schemes include Post- Matric Scholarship (PMS), hostels for ST girls and boys, and Ashram schools.
Under PMS, 100 percent central assistance is provided to the states/UTs over and above their committed liabilities from North East pool for book-banks and up-gradation of merit of ST students.
The scheme of Village Grain Bank is under implementation since 1996-97 with an aim to prevent starvation deaths of STs in general and children in particular in remote and backward areas. This scheme provides grain banks in the village itself, operated by a managing committee of members. There are also special nutrition programmes through ICDS, Mid-day Meal Scheme and Targeted Public Distribution System.
For ensuring remunerative price for tribal produce, marketing and employment opportunities and towards preventing exploitation of STs by the middle men, the Ministry provides 100 per cent grant-in-aid to State Tribal Development Co-operative Corporations (STDCC), Forest Development Corporation (FDC), Minor Forest Produce (Trading and Development) Federation (MFTDF) for minor forest produce operations.
In April 2001, in order to give focused attention to STs, the National Scheduled Tribes Finance and Development Corporation (NSTFDC) was incorporated to assist the State Tribal Development Corporations (STDCs). An exclusive scheme for women, ‘Adivasi Mahila Sashaktikaran Yojana’, has been launched to promote economic development amongst the tribal women. Under the scheme, the NSTFDC provides term loan through the State Channelising Agencies (SCAs) for the schemes/projects costing upto Rs. 50,000 per unit at a concessional interest rate of 4 per cent.
5. Welfare of Physically/Mentally Disabled:
Over 130 districts have been identified for providing comprehensive rehabilitation to disabled persons. 170 District Disability Rehabilitation Centres (DDRCs) have started functioning. The Expert Committee on Social Welfare has identified 120 jobs at the supervisory, executive and managerial levels and 945 jobs at the level of skilled/semi-skilled suitable for persons with disabilities in the private sector.
Five Composite Regional Centres (CRCs) at Bhopal, Guwahati, Lucknow, Srinagar and Sundernagar have been set up to expand facilities for manpower development and to ensure availability of rehabilitation services for all categories of persons with disabilities. Four Regional Rehabilitation Centres (RRCs) at Bareilly, Cuttack, Jabalpur, and Mohali have been set up to provide services to persons with spinal injuries.
For assisting disabled persons in procuring durable, sophisticated and scientifically manufactured aids and appliances, financial assistance is being provided to the various agencies such as NGOs, National Institutes, Artificial Limbs Manufacturing Corporation (ALMC) under a scheme called ‘Assistance to Persons with Disabilities for Purchase/Fitting of Aids and Appliances (ADIP)’.
Another scheme being implemented is Science & Technology Project for application of technology in development and utilization of suitable and cost effective aids and appliances such as functional mechanical hand, inter-pointing Braille state, Braille micrometer, training module for prevention and early detection of childhood disabilities, electronic guide cane, low cost STD/PCO speech card, software for mentally challenged children for learning and teaching and motorized wheel chair.
The National Handicapped Finance Development Corporation (NHFDC) provides concessional loans to the disabled with an annual income of less than Rs. 1 lakh per annum in the urban areas and Rs. 80,000 per annum in the rural areas for undertaking income generation activities. Under its micro-financing scheme, the Corporation has also assisted individual beneficiaries as well as the SHGs.
The voluntary sector has also played an important role in delivering community-based services to the disabled. The scheme ‘Promote Voluntary Action for Persons with Disability’ has been supported to widen its operations like providing legal aid, recreation, research, etc. and to introduce new innovative components in their services.
The rehabilitation and empowerment of disabled persons is also now a statutory responsibility of the Government as per the enactment of the Person With Disability (PWD) Act, 1995. The Deen Dayal Disabled Rehabilitation Scheme provides financial assistance to voluntary organizations for running, rehabilitation centers for leprosy cured persons, for manpower development in the field of mental retardation and cerebral palsy, and establishment and development of special schools for the major areas of orthopedic, speech, hearing, visual and mental disability.
A Scheme of National Scholarship for Persons with Disabilities has been introduced from the year 2002-03. 250 awards each for male students and female students in different categories of disabilities are being given for using higher and technical education above graduate level.
6. Other Disadvantaged Groups:
The Other Disadvantaged Groups (ODGs) include the aged, the orphaned, abandoned, destitute and street children, who in the wake of declining family support system and other socio-economic circumstances are left helpless and require the support and protection from the State.
To fulfil the commitments of the National Policy on Older Persons, special emphasis is being placed on expanding the on-going programmes of old age homes, day care centres, mobile medicare units and medicare centres being implemented under the scheme of Integrated Programme for Older Persons. Financial assistance has been extended to 451 NGOs for running 222 Old Age Homes, 201 Day Care Centers and 27 Mobile Medicare Units.
A special pension policy, Varishtha Pension Bima Yojana, for persons aged 55 years and above was also launched on July 14, 2003 by the Life Insurance Corporation of India. The policy guarantees an annual return of 9 percent in the form of monthly payment.
With the objective of weaning away the street children from a life of deprivation and vagrancy and rehabilitating them, An Integrated Programme for Street Children is being implemented with a wide range of initiatives like 24 hour drop-in shelters, night shelters, nutrition, health care, sanitation, hygiene, safe drinking water, education, recreational facilities and protection against abuse and exploitation.
Currently, 190 organisations have been operating in 22 states benefiting 1.58 lakh street children. The special initiative of the Childline Service, a toll free telephone service is available to children in distress which responds to the emergency needs of the children and provides referral service. This facility is now operating in 34 cities.