The government of Odisha has announced a new initiative to provide financial aid to economically disadvantaged ST/SC students studying general degree programs in government institutions. Chief Minister Shri Naveen Patnaik made this announcement during a speech to the Tribes Advisory Council on July 11, 2023. The one-time financial aid amount is set at Rs 50,000.
Chief Minister Patnaik emphasized his government’s commitment to improving the socio-economic conditions and addressing the educational needs of tribal communities. The government has established Special Development Councils (SDCs) to promote and preserve tribal culture, traditions, heritage, and identity, actively involving tribal people.
This year, the program has been expanded to cover 172 blocks across 23 districts, benefiting more than 8.4 million tribal individuals. Recognizing the significance of education for socio-economic upliftment, the Chief Minister highlighted that Odisha is at the forefront of providing residential facilities to tribal students. Currently, over 600,000 students from 420,000 households have access to hostel facilities in 1,735 schools under the SC/ST Development department.
Over the past two decades, the number of high schools under the department has nearly doubled, rising from 215 to 422. Additionally, 62 higher secondary schools have been established. Odisha has gained recognition for its implementation of the Forest Rights Act and recently launched the “Mo Jungle Jami Yojana” scheme, aiming to grant forest land holding and habitation rights to eligible ST forest dwellers. This initiative ensures the acknowledgment of community rights over forest land.
Furthermore, the Chief Minister revealed the introduction of the Mukhya Mantri Jeevika Mission, a government-funded initiative aimed at promoting tribal livelihoods. With a budget of Rs 500 crore, the scheme will support 150,000 tribal households in 121 tribal sub-plan (TSP) blocks over a three-year period from 2022-23 to 2025-26. Moreover, Odisha has submitted a proposal to the Union government to expand the Odisha PVTG Empowerment and Livelihoods Improvement Programme to include 1,138 newly notified PVTG villages for a seven-year period starting from 2024-25.
Prasanta Patnaik