Decoding Union Budget 2023: An Anti Bahujan Budget In The Amrit Kaal?

"When will the Amrit Kaal arrive for Adivasis, Dalits and Minorities?" asked Bahujan activists during a press conference on February 3, 2023. The question was raised two days after Indian finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the general budget on February 1. Introducing the annual financial statement 2023-2024, which saw an increase of 35.4 percent from the previous year with much fanfare,  Sitharaman struck the 'Amrit Kaal' chords as she envisaged the dream of a golden future for India. 

Organized by the Dalit Economic Rights Movement (NCDHR) at Human Resource Development Centre (HRDC), Ranchi, activists highlighted that the 2023-24 annual financial statement fails to address the structural injustices and inequalities experienced by the marginalized communities, ignoring the specific critical needs of these communities.

As the nation struggles with record-breaking inflation and unemployment rates, the budget makes no suggestions to deal with these challenges that have left the 'common person' hanging by a thread. The total budget for the financial year 2023-2024 has been fixed at Rs 49,90,842.73 crore and 3.1 per cent of this has been allocated for the welfare of Dalits, which is Rs 1,59,126.22 crore while the total allocated budget for the Adivasis (STs) is Rs 1,19,509.87 crore, 2.3 per cent of the budget. Out of this, the target amount to reach Dalits is Rs 30,475 crore and the target amount to reach tribals is Rs 24,384 crore.

The union, for the financial year 2023-2024 has slashed around 93per cent of its budget allocation for the education scheme for madrassas and minorities. While Rs 160 crore was allocated in the budget of 2022-23, only Rs 10 crore has been allocated for the education scheme for the same this year. The total budget allocation for education empowerment for minorities which was Rs 2515 crore last year has also been reduced to Rs 1689 crore this year. The budget for research schemes for minorities has been capped at Rs 20 crore which was Rs 41 crore in 2022-23. 

The Pradhan Mantri Jan Vikas Karyakram (PMJVK) budget, seeks to support states/Union Territories to provide better socio-economic infrastructure facilities to the minority communities particularly in the field of education, health & skill development in order to lessen the gap between the national average and the minority communities with regard to backwardness parameters was Rs 1650 crore last year. It has shrunk to Rs 600 crore this year. Notably, there is a 13 per cent approximate rise in the budget allocation for the defence. The 2022-23 defence budget was Rs. 525166.15 crores while the 2023-24 defence budget is Rs 593537.64 crores.

Union Budget 2023-24: A Breach Of NITI Aayog Guidelines?

Belgian-born Indian welfare economist, social scientist, and activist Jean Drèze shared his opinion on the budget with Outlook saying, "We are dealing with a system that tends to be loaded against scheduled castes, scheduled tribes, minorities, and other marginalized groups." Drèze said that it is important to scrutinize who is benefiting from public expenditure and public policies. Looking at budget allocations is one way of doing so. Pointing at the influential market forces, he added that it would be interesting to look at the social composition of the big beneficiaries of government largesse, like the heads of top business houses. "There is no prize for guessing the results," said the co-author of 'An Uncertain Glory: India And Its Contradictions'.

With the purpose of all-around development of the Adivasi and Dalit community, the government of India started the Adivasi Sub-Plan under the 5th Five Year Plan in 1974-75, and the Dalit Sub-Plan(SCSP) in 1979-80. The policy mandates the Centre to determine the annual financial statement in proportion to the population of both communities. There is also an additional condition that the allocated amount will be non-transferrable to any other item, and the unspent amount will not be returned to the government's fund. Separate budget codes have been specified in the budget for the same, which is 796 for the Adivasi sub-plan and 789 for the Dalit sub-plan.

Jharkhand NREGA Watch Coordinator James Herenz pointed to the contradiction of the budget vis-a-vis the NITI Ayog's policies. "The 2011 census data states that the Dalit population in the country is around 16.6 per cent while the Adivasi population is 8.2 per cent. While the policy guarantees 24 per cent budget allocation to these communities, it can clearly be seen that only 2.3 and 3.1 per cent of the total budget has been allocated to us," Herenz said.

Adivasi activist, Taramani Sahoo while speaking with Outlook said that the 2023-24 budget is a reflection of the anti-Adivasi, anti-Dalit, anti-minority, and anti-women mindset of the government. "The budget is not acceptable to us as it rejects the idea of equity and equality guaranteed to us by the constitution,' Sahoo said adding that a large part of the budget has been allocated to irrelevant and generic issues, thus showing the lack of sensitivity and inclusivity on the Centre's end in the making of the annual budget.

Budget 2023-24: Budging Out The Minorities And Marginalised?

Talking to Outlook on the annual financial statement, academic and activist, Safoora Zargar called the union budget a clear message for Indian Muslims, especially Muslim women. She said that the 2023 budget is a means for the state to do everything in its power to dissuade Muslim girls from getting an education and deny them their chance at a life of dignity. "Not only have the budgets been slashed but the State has created an environment of fear for Muslims in educational institutions by various means including denying Muslim women our right to wear the hijab in schools in Karnataka," Zargar added. Underlining the government's responsibility to nurture minorities in the country, she highlights that the State is deliberately and knowingly excluding and isolating its own citizens simply because of their religious identity. 

In terms of education, Muslims in this country are at the lowest rung and this budget is the last thing the community needs. "India does not need billionaires, we need an egalitarian society and that can only happen by including all citizens. If this government cannot put the interests of the people of India above the interest of a few individuals, all they are doing is selling this country off," she remarked.

The budget overlooks the community-centric needs of Adivasis and Dalits and instead emphasizes on infrastructure development, which will only further widen the gulf between the privileged and marginalized. Jharkhand state organizer of the National Campaign on Dalit Human Rights (NCDHR), Mithilesh Kumar told Outlook, "We call upon the government to take immediate steps to plug these shortcomings and use the allocated funds with transparency and accountability for the development of Dalit and tribal communities. It should also be ensured that the budgetary funds are used for special welfare schemes addressing the specific needs and challenges of these communities."

That the government makes no attempt to formulate schemes exclusively for Dalit women and overlooks the increasing crime rates against Dalit women and girls is reflected in the union budget. The NCDHR in its analysis report points out the fallacies of the budget which shows a declining pattern in its allocation of funds for Dalit women. The allocation has descended from one per cent of the total budget in 2021 to 0.97 in 2022 and 0.53 in 2023 for Dalit women. The budget also reduces the allocation of venture capital funds for Adivasi and Dalit women for entrepreneurial purposes to Rs 27.60 crores this year, which previously was Rs 33 crores.

The critical report also highlights how no funds have been allocated for the rehabilitation of manual scavengers under The Self Employment Scheme for Rehabilitation of Manual Scavengers compared to Rs70 Crores in FY (Financial Year) 2022–2023. However, a new scheme with an allocation of Rs 97.41 Crore has been introduced, called NAMASTE (National Action for Mechanised Sanitised Ecosystem) aimed to provide an alternate livelihood to sanitation workers through capacity building and improved access to safety gear and machines. Up to 48 workers, including four in Delhi and 13 in Haryana, the highest number in the nation, died while cleaning septic tanks in 2022.

As per a 2022 OXFAM report, Dalits and Adivasis are the most marginalized in health care sectors, due to gross inequality caused by the privatization of health care and low-quality service at public hospitals. These reasons have further pushed marginalized communities towards debt and poverty. The report also states the alarming fact that Dalit women live 15 years less than the dominant caste. In gross contradiction to such findings, an allocation of Rs 1964 crore made for Adivasis and Dalits for FY 2022-23 under Ayushman Bharat, PMJAY, has now been slashed by Rs 100 crores in FY 2023-24 with only Rs 1864 allocated for health care schemes of these communities. 

Delhi-based NCDHR activist Dolly Paswan observes that while the 2021 NCRB data shows an evident increase in crimes to 50,013 crimes against Dalits and Adivasis, the budget allocation is reduced to Rs. 500 Crores this year from Rs.600 Crores last year and only Rs.150 Cr for addressing violence against Dalit Women. "The reality of these crime rates are higher than the government data in fact, yet the Union budget takes no cognizance of this and fails to formulate policies meant for the protection of Dalit and Adivasi women," Paswan added.