The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh News : Panel to study funding of SC/ST schemes

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Saturday, Aug 11, 2007
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Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

Panel to study funding of SC/ST schemes

Special Correspondent

HYDERABAD: The State Government has constituted a high-level committee comprising Ministers of Tribal and Social Welfare along with Secretaries of Planning and Finance to evolve a plan to optimise fund spending under Special Component Plan for Scheduled Castes and Tribal Sub Plan.

The constitution of the committee was necessary following complaints that the present pattern of fund spending was not useful to the target groups.

Review meeting

Chief Minister Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy who reviewed the work of these two departments on Friday said the committee should consider spending of the funds in the first quarter itself to study its impact of development.

Recalling that 16.2 per cent funds of the annual plan was to be spent on the development of SCs and 6.6 per cent on the uplift of STs, he said Education, Minor Irrigation, Rural electrification and Housing should be the focal sectors here.

Additional funds

If necessary, the Government would release additional funds for providing houses to tribals under Indiramma scheme. It was observed that tribals were not in a position to benefit from it with the present subsidy and other assistances.

Special care must be taken in providing shelter to tribals as they constitute the poorest of the poor in the State. He insisted on constant monitoring of the funds released to plug loopholes. Tribal Welfare Minister Redya Naik, Social Welfare Minister P. Subhash Chandra Bose, Special Chief Secretary, Planning, A. K. Goel, Principal Secretary, Social Welfare, A. P. V. N. Sharma, Secretary, Tribal Welfare, V. Nagi Reddy and Secretary, Finance, Poonam Malakondaiah, attended.

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