Flood of Promises – Unspent Funds
Adivasis and dalits still matter
the least when it comes to the
provision of even basic facilities like
household ownership, electricity,
latrines and water connections.
Where they do figure prominently
are in statistics relating to child
mortality, school dropouts and
extreme poverty. For instance, the
child mortality rate among STs
(35.8) is almost double in comparison
to all social groups (18.4).
In the run-up to the 2014
general elections, then the Bharatiya
Janata Party’s prime ministerial
candidate Narendra Modi, while
addressing a gathering of Dalits
and backward classes in Kerala,
had described himself as a victim
of untouchability. “The next 10
years are going to be yours,” he
had said.
The National Democratic
Alliance (NDA) g overnm ent
ostensibly kept his promise–the
2014-15 budget witnessed a 25%
increase in allocation of the two
funds meant for Dalits and the
adivasis–the Scheduled Caste Sub
Plan (SCSP) and the Tribal Sub
Plan (TSP) funds. However, more
than one-third of the funds
allocated by central ministries–Rs
32,979 crore–remained unspent in
2014-15.
This is an increase of 250%
in the money unused compared to
the previous year. Modi’s first year
in office as the prime minister saw
the ‘highest’ amount unspent and
also the highest percentage of
amount unspent in the last three
years.
Ever since they were first
launched 35 years ago, the two
funds have been lef t mostly
untouched by successive governments. Rs 2.8 lakh crore ($42.6
20
billion) set aside to improve the lives
of scheduled castes and tribes
have been lying unused while their
intended beneficiaries continue to
suffer severe deprivation.
As per guidelines, a part of
the budget–proportionate to at
least the population of SCs and
STs–at both central and state levels
is to be set aside for SCs and STs.
The current population of SCs and
STs in India is 16.6% and 8.6%. So,
16.6% and 8.6% of the Union
budget should be allocated to
SCSP and TSP, respectively. The
same applies to the states too.
Not just that, each ministry,
whether state or central, has to
keep aside the same percentage
of their total funds for SCSP and
TSP to carry out individual, family
or habitat development works and
welfare schemes for SCs and STs.
For instance, the human
resource development ministry has
to set apart funds under the two
strategies for building schools,
providing nutritious meals and
scholarships and other similar
measures f or SCs and STs.
Similarly, the agriculture ministry
has to set aside funds for providing
subsidised seeds and fertilisers
and crop insurance to SC and ST
farmers.
The funds are ‘non- lapsable’
as per the guidelines issued in
2006 and 2014 by the erstwhile
Planning Commission, now NITI
Aayog. But low spending has
crippled the effort. Records show
that no matter which party is in
power, SCs and STs rarely benefit
from these funds.
The unspent amount–either
lapsed or given back to the Centre
–is eight times larger than India’s
agriculture budget, enough to fund
India’s rural road construction
projects for the next 15 years The
unspent Rs 2.8 lakh crore falls
under two funds: Tribal Sub Plan
(TSP), started in 1974-75, and
Scheduled Caste Sub Plan
(SCSP), begun in 1979-80, to
channelise funds from general
budgets to STs and SCs.
Two years ago, a NCDHR
study found that successive
governments had denied around
Rs 5 lakh crore to Dalits and
adivasis by not allocating funds
proportionate to their populations.
But even the reduced funds that
are allocated to the plans are
further diluted. For instance, for
2014-15, Telangana’s budget for
TSP was Rs 4,404.59 crore, but it
was revised down to Rs 1,950.29
crore, a decrease of 55.7%.
Though the funds are
allocated in the budget, they are
released very late in the financial
year, leaving states with a very
short window to spend them. For
instance, in 2014-15, the Karnataka
government made budgetary
allocation for SCSP and TSP in the
state budget in February.But the
meeting to release the funds was
not chaired by the chief minister
until October–a six-month delay.
This left the ministry with only five
months to spend the entire fund.
During the United Progressive
Alliance (UPA) rule, the government
had diverted its funds to Common
wealth Games. Later, it was
revealed that the funds were used
by the Delhi government to buy
Diwali sweets.
In f act, even states such
as Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and
Karnataka that have passed
leg islations
f or
proper
implementation of SCSP and TSP,
contd on page 22
Class Struggle