Manoj Sinha Talks About Government's Efforts For A Holistic Development Of Tribal Communities In Jammu And Kashmir

Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha Sunday said the government is working tirelessly for the holistic development of tribal communities and promoting entrepreneurship among the youth and women.

The LG conferred the first-ever UT-level Tribal Awards at SKICC here and felicitated individuals and institutions for their exemplary services to tribal welfare and achievements in the field of sports, education, culture, literature, science, and technology.

"Extremely proud to have participated in the first-ever UT level Tribal Awards Ceremony. This initiative to acknowledge the achievements and services of the community will encourage many more to work for the welfare of the others," he said.

Highlighting the measures taken by the government for the welfare of J-K's tribal community, Sinha said the Union Territory administration is working tirelessly for the holistic development of tribal communities, promoting entrepreneurship amongst tribal youth and women, transforming tribal schools, village development, tourism and implementing Van Dhan for their empowerment.

The Lt Governor announced that 500 tribal youths will be trained under the Financial Literacy Programme proposed by the Bombay Stock Exchange and Punjab National Bank. For the sustainable livelihood of the youth, the administration has set up mini sheep farms in the tribal areas. Efforts are being made to link the tribal youth with the dairy sector. Besides, programs of skill development and vocational training have been launched to bring a large population into the mainstream economy, Sinha said.

He said after many years of waiting, the Forest Rights Act was implemented by the government last year. The UT administration is setting up 100 Van Dhan Kendras in Jammu and Kashmir for the sustainable livelihood of the tribal families, he said. The government is also starting 1500 Van Dhan Self-Help Groups to make women of the tribal community financially independent and empowered, he said.

On this occasion, MoUs have been signed between Tribal Affairs department, IIT Jammu, and Baba Ghulam Shah Badshah University in Rajouri for establishing the Tribal Chair in both the institutes. The Lt Governor termed the establishment of Tribal Chairs a milestone in academic research and preserving the cultural heritage of the tribal community. "It will bridge the gap in research and institutional support. The collaboration will work towards the preservation of rare books, language styles, socio-cultural heritage, and most importantly, the documented history can be digitized," he said.

He said Tribal Research Institute in J-K is preserving tribal cultural heritage, felicitating outstanding achievers from tribal communities, identifying problems related to tribals, and pursuing research activities for capacity building to fully realize their potential. We have evolved an effective and comprehensive strategy, being executed at the grassroots level, for enhancing the income of tribal families and providing life-fulfilling opportunities to youth, best possible medical care facilities, and bringing each family under the social security net, he said.

Sinha said for the first time in history, ASHA health workers from the tribal community are being appointed to work for the health care of the population living in the high pasture region during the summer season. In addition to the Tribal Health Plan that started last year, Telemedicine and Mobile Medical Care Unit will bring much-needed transformation in health care of tribal families, he noted.

The Lt Governor observed that in the last two years, the UT government has worked towards achieving a balanced development of infrastructure as well as human resources through a host of unprecedented policy decisions, schemes, and programs. Terming education as the most potent tool for the progress of tribal communities, the Lt Governor said the budget for scholarships has been increased to Rs 45 crore from the last year's Rs 31 Crore.

Lauding the efforts of officials of the Tribal Affairs Department of the UT, the Lt Governor called upon the department to focus on the convergence of all available welfare schemes so that maximum benefits are percolated at the grassroots level. Sinha also flagged off 41 Ambulances for different cluster tribal villages.