Srinagar, Dec 05 (KNO): The central government informed Lok Sabha on Thursday that it has released an amount of Rs 3349.26 crore to Jammu and Kashmir under the Development Action Plan for Scheduled Tribes (DAPST) over the past five years.
According to the Minister of State (MoS) for Tribal Affairs, this includes Rs 617.04 crore in 2019-20, Rs 319.06 crore in 2020-21, Rs 541.48 crore in 2021-22, Rs 765.57 crore in 2022-23 and Rs 1106.11 crore in 2023-24.
The house was informed that the government is implementing the DAPST as a strategy for the development of Scheduled Tribes and areas with tribal concentrations in the country. “In addition to the Ministry of Tribal Affairs, 41 other Ministries/Departments allocate a certain percentage of their annual budgets for tribal development under DAPST,” the government said.
“This funding supports various tribal development projects, including those related to education, health, agriculture, irrigation, roads, housing, electrification, employment generation, and skill development,” it added.
“Most of the schemes from the Ministry of Tribal Affairs are demand-driven, and funds are provided to state governments based on the proposals received from them after appraisal and approval by the Ministry,” the government added—(KNO)