In a joint statement four national Dalit organisations have expressed “shock” at the decision of NITI (National Institute for Transforming India) Aayog – set-up by the NDA government after scrapping the Planning Commission – to wash its hands of the responsibility to monitor and review the implementation of Tribal Sub-Plan (TSP) and Schedule Caste Sub-Plan (SCSP).
Stating that “This decision stands contradictory to the Constitutional rights of the marginalised communities”, the National Campaign on Dalit Human Rights (NCDHR) has expressed “its shock and disappointment at this turn of events” and demanded that the prime minister take cognisance of the same”.
As reported in a business daily, NITI has written to Ministry of Tribal Affairs and Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment asking the two ministries to take over the monitoring and review responsibility. The statement adds that the decision of NITI to shift its burden to the two ministries without even bothering to propose the creation of a robust mechanism within the ministries for effective implementation of SCSP- TSP amounts to “abdicating its responsibility towards an important section of the Society”.
The statement draws attention to the fact that while dissolving the Planning Commission, the NDA government had established NITI Aayog through a Cabinet Resolution in January 2015 with the mandate to develop a ‘vision’ for ‘national development’ which includes the development of SCs and STs.
Should NITI Aayog and the NDA government fail in its duty to create the necessary mechanisms within the two ministries through comprehensive legislation, it would be directly responsible for “excluding the marginalised communities from development”.
Full text of the statement:
We (the undersigned) are alarmed at the recent exchange of letters between National Institute for Transforming India (NITI) Aayog and Ministry of Tribal Affairs and Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment. According to these letters, NITI Aayog lacks ‘mandate’ and expressed its inability to monitor and review the implementation of Tribal Sub-Plan and Schedule Caste Sub-Plan and asked the two ministries to conduct the exercise. Instead of proposing a robust mechanism for effective implementation of SCSP-TSP and transferring the responsibility to the concerned Ministries we find it negligence by NITI Aayog that they are washing away their hands and abdicating their responsibility towards an important section of the Society.
According to the contents of the letter as published in a news piece in, Economic Times on May, 1st 2016, the mandate of NITI Aayog unlike its predecessor the Planning Commission is not geared towards a five-year planning. NITI Aayog proposes to shift the mandate of allocation, implementation and monitoring of Dalit and Adivasi Budgets under Scheduled Castes Sub Plan, (SCSP) and Tribal Sub Plan (TSP) to the concerned Ministries of Tribal Affairs and Social Justice and Empowerment.
Planning Commission of India, which held the responsibility of review and monitoring Tribal Sub-Plan (TSP) and Schedule Caste Sub-Plan (SCSP), was dissolved and NITI Aayog was constituted following Cabinet Resolution on January 1st 2015. The mandate of NITI Aayog as spelled out in its Constitution points at developing a ‘vision’ for ‘national development’ which includes the development of SCs and STs. In this context, the NITI Aayog took over the mandate of monitoring and review of SCSP-TSP from the erstwhile Planning Commission. After a year and half, we find it alarming for the NITI Aayog to transfer the responsibility to the concerned ministries without the government putting in necessary mechanisms within the concerned ministries.
The current move by the NITI Aayog undermines Constitutional provisions and rights of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes leading to a deep negative impact on the communities for generations to come.
At this critical juncture NITI Aayog has an important role in creating a body within MoTA and MSJE as nodal authorities with necessary powers and resources for implementation of SCSP and TSP. If this is not done not only the NITI Aayog, but the whole government will be responsible for excluding the marginalised communities from development. These ministries thus far have not been vested with adequate power and mandate to implement and review SCSP and TSP. This may be done through a comprehensive legislation for implementation of SCSP and TSP with necessary provisions as mentioned above for the concerned ministries. Such a draft already exists with the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment which had also completed public as well as inter-ministerial consultations.
We therefore appeal to your esteemed self, to take cognisance of the serious matter at hand initiate immediate steps to —
1. Legislate on Scheduled Castes Sub Plan and Tribal Sub-Plan with necessary institutional and administrative resources for its effective implementation.
2. Empower MoTA (Ministry of Tribal Affairs) and MSJE (Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment) and nodal authorities with necessary human and fiscal resources to effectively monitor and review SCSP and TSP.
Signatories:
Vimal Thorat, convener, National Campaign for Dalit Human Rights
N Paul Divakar, general secretary, Dalit Arthik Adhikar Andolan
Asha Kowtal, general secretary, All India Dalit Mahila Adhikar Manch
V Ramesh Nathan, general secretary, National Dalit Movement for Justice