Law sought for implementation of SC, Tribal Sub-Plans

With a view to ensuring that the Scheduled Caste and Tribal Sub-Plans are implemented in letter and spirit, a strong demand for a central law to enable it was made at a meeting of a panel comprising Union ministers set up to oversee the preparations for the 125th birth anniversary celebrations of BR Ambedkar.
At a meeting of the Executive Committee on the Nationwide Celebration chaired by Home Minister Rajnath Singh a few days back, members also raised objections over NITI Aayog's response to various proposals made by the panel and decided to call the plan body's representatives at the next meeting, official sources said.

The meeting also saw demands for a job quota to promote inter-caste marriage, issuance of coins of one rupee denomination entirely with Ambedkar's image and providing of one-time assistance to manual scavengers to free them from the inhuman practice.
The government had constituted a National Committee chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to provide guidance, advice and direction for the 125th birth anniversary celebrations of the Dalit icon.
The Executive Committee chaired by the Home Minister was also set up later to implement the decisions and suggestions of the National Committee.
At the first meeting of the National Committee on July 23, last year, it was suggested that a legislation be enacted by the Centre to ensure that the Scheduled Caste Sub Plan and Tribal Sub Plan -- which aim at ensuring flow of targeted financial and physical benefits from all the general sectors of development for the benefit of SC/STs -- are implemented in letter and spirit.

In the action-taken report, NITI Aayog had recently said that it has issued fresh guidelines to the central ministries, departments, states and Union territories for proper implementation of the SCSP/TSP, the sources said.

NITI Aayog also suggested that the ministry may have a "rethink" on the draft Cabinet note on the legislation, thus indicating that it wanted a cautious approach on the issue.
At the Executive Committee meeting on February 1, Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswan, however, stressed that a legislation is required to ensure proper implementation of SCSP and TSP and asserted that there is "no need" for a rethink on it.

The Scheduled Caste Sub Plan and Tribal Sub Plan draft
Bill was pursued by the UPA government in 2013. Congress had committed itself to the Bill in its January, 2013, Jaipur 'Chintan Shivir'.
The proposed legislation, which was on the same lines as the Bill passed by Congress governments in Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka, aimed at preventing diversion of funds and ensure spending of the allotted funds for schemes that directly benefit SC/STs.
While the then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's office was for the Bill to be referred to a committee of secretaries for further examination, the then Union Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment, Kumari Selja, had opposed such a move, arguing that it could unnecessarily delay the landmark legislation at a time when the Cabinet note and Bill was under finalisation of the ministry of law.

She had wanted that the Bill be passed in the Budget Session of 2014.
The meeting also sought that reservation be provided to those marrying outside their caste.
While the July 23 meeting last year had seen the committee recommending that caste-less marriages may be encouraged by providing incentives to the eligible couples, the sub- committee meeting on February 1 witnessed a member insist that mere incentives would not do and the government should provide a certain percentage of reservation in jobs to those marrying outside their caste.
Paswan had demanded 10 per cent reservation in jobs under this head.

Suggestions were also made during the meeting by Social Justice Minister Thawar Chand Gehlot and others, including Narendra Jadhav and Milind Kamble.
With the Prime Minister having released commemorative coins of Rs 10 and Rs 125 denomination in December last year, the Home Minister is learnt to have discussed the idea of issuing all coins of a particular denomination with Ambedkar's image instead of a few thousand commemorative coins only.
Sources said that the committee has also requested the Ministry of Finance to examine whether a rupee note or coins of different denominations can be issued bearing Ambedkar's image.
A key suggestion of the committee was that a caste that has been declared as Scheduled Caste in a particular district of a particular state be considered for the same status all over the state.

In the action-taken report, the government, however, argued that territorial restriction has been imposed on the recognition of Scheduled Castes because of social disabilities attached to certain castes. In the sub-committee meeting, some members wanted that this restriction should go.