The Maharashtra government on Tuesday announced the setting up of a training and career guidance institute for OBC, Special Backward Class and VJNT communities.
The decision to form Mahatma Jyotiba Phule Research and Training Institute, also called MahaJyoti, was taken in a weekly cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis.
Talking to reporters after the meeting, OBC, SBC, VJNT Communities Welfare department minister Sanjay Kute said the institute will be headquartered in Pune, with divisional offices in Nagpur and Buldhana, and have a budget of Rs 380 crore for two years.
The institute will work for the social, educational and economic development of these communities and the decision to form it was was taken on the basis of a committee report that suggested a platform for students preparing for competitive examinations, Kute said.
It would carry out surveys for improving the situation of backward classes and deprived sections of the society, and make available facilities for self-employment and impart skill training, the minister added.
MahaJyoti will also have a helpline and counselling centre, and provide scholarships for M. Phil and Ph.D courses, besides creating awareness for removal of caste and creed bias.
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The institute will have three programmes, namely 'Jyotidhoot', 'Jaldhoot' and 'Savitridhoot'.
Jaldhoot will have programmes of awareness in water literacy, conservation, irrigation, water management among others.
Savitridhoot will create awareness about gender bias, prohibition and cleanliness, while Jyotidhoot will work to alleviate dowry and caste discrimination.
In another decision, Kute said the Dhangar community will get all benefits provided to Scheduled Tribes by the Tribal Development department, adding that a provision of Rs 1,000 crore was made for this in the state budget.
A sum of Rs 500 crore has already been budgeted, he said.
The minister said, as per the cabinet decision, 13 schemes being implemented in Tribal Development department for Adivasis will be extended to Dhangars.
Prominent among the schemes are providing land for grazing of sheep, financial assistance for Dhangar students if there is no provision for hostels, giving admissions to meritorious students from the Dhangar community in prominent English schools as well as a scheme to build 10,000 homes for the community.
There is a also a scheme for investment in setting up industries, Kute said.
The minister said the issue of quota for Dhangars is being heard in court, but the state government has decided that, till then, all facilities provided to tribals be given to the former as well.
In other decisions in Tuesday's cabinet meeting, the government decided to increase honorarium of headmen (sarpanch) as per the population of the village.
Sarpanch of villages with a population of 8,000 will get Rs 5,000 while those heading villages with less than 8000 people will get Rs 3,000.
The Mumbai-Pune Hyperloop plan has been declared an infrastructure project, and a consortium of DP World FZE, Hyperloop Technologies and INC has been approved.
Another decision was to allow Maharashtra Urban Infrastructure Development Company to provide loans to urban local bodies.