Van Dhan Yojana could be a game changer in promoting livelihood of tribals: Tribal Affairs Minister Arjun Munda
by Bhupen Goswami
GUWAHATI : “The Van Dhan Yojana could be a game changer in promoting livelihood and enterprises of tribals in Assam, while Eklavya Vidyalayas will provide tribal children with the same and high quality education as children from other communities,” Tribal Affairs Minister Arjun Munda said at the State Guest House in Guwahati on September 12. Munda also met Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma during his two-day visit to the state.
The long meeting with the Chief Minister was aimed at reviewing and obtaining information about the status of implementation of tribal development programmes like Small Forest Produce, Forest Money Self Help Group and Trifood Projects in the State. The meeting was attended by several Ministers and Principal Secretaries of the Government of Assam, and Managing Director of TRIFED Pravir Krishna and other officials.During the meeting, the progress made by the State of Assam was reviewed by the Minister on programmes being run by the Government to improve the lives of tribalpeople such as Msp Scheme for Small Forest Produce, Van Dhan Yojana, ESDP Training for Tribal Community, etc. Earlier in August, the Assam Chief Minister had met the TRIFED team in New Delhi to discuss the issue of planning for expansion of tribal development in the state and further steps to be taken. Future plans for taking tribal development to the next level were also showcased and discussed during the meeting.
The Union Minister attended the Voice of North East Tribal Leader Conference at Laxmi Bai National Institute of Physical Education, North East Regional Centre.The tribal community in the state of Assam in north-eastern India has a population of 3,308,570, which is 12.4% of the total population. During the last two years, the ‘Mechanism for Marketing of Small Forest Produce (MFP) through Minimum Support Price (MSP) and Development of Price Chain for Small Forest Produce (MFP) scheme has emerged as a symbol of change in the last two years in this State. Conceptualised by TRIFED and implemented in collaboration with State Government agencies in 21 States of the country, the scheme has emerged as a source of great relief for tribal collectors by directly transferring more than crores of rupees into the tribal economy.
The State of Assam has made full use of the Msp Scheme for Small Forest Produce in which a total of 58.56 MT of small forest produce worth Rs. 37.39 lakh has been procured using government of India funds. A total of 1,920 Forest Money Self Help Groups have been sanctioned under The Van Dhan Yojana which have been included in 128 Forest Money Development Centre Groups. This is directly benefiting 37,786 tribal forest produce collectors. A total amount of Rs. 19.20 crore has been sanctioned for the operation of these Forest Money Development Centre Groups.
The second day’s event of the visit includes a meeting with Assam Governor Jagdish Mukhi and a visit to the Van Dhan Workshop organized by the Indian Institute of Entrepreneurship (IIE) where he will also interact with the beneficiaries of the scheme. Such review, monitoring and implementation of programmes at the grass root level is being planned for all states to expedite the process of income generation and empowerment of tribals. TRIFED is working with all its heart in its mission to make progress towards a self-reliant India and for the overall transformation of the lives and livelihoods of tribal communities across the country.
