The Hindu : National : Nodal agency for SC/ST welfare a must: Opposition

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Thursday, Oct 11, 2007
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Nodal agency for SC/ST welfare a must: Opposition

Special Correspondent

HYDERABAD: Cutting across party lines, Opposition party leaders on Wednesday rejected the State Government’s recent order on setting up an apex committee to monitor the implementation of the Scheduled Castes and Tribal sub-plans.

At a round table organised by the Struggle Committee against Caste Discrimination, they insisted on the creation of a nodal agency exclusively to handle channelisation of funds received for SC/ST welfare and monitor implementation of various programmes. They were referring to G.O. 77, dated September 18, 2007.

B.V. Raghavulu, CPI (M) State Secretary, said that of 1,107 mandals in Andhra Pradesh, 407 were officially acknowledged ‘most backward’ in all development parameters. This was mostly due to the population comprising a sizeable number of Dalits, Girijans and other weaker sections, he said.

When every Government spoke of single windows in other sectors, what prevented the creation of a single window for welfare of SCs and STs, he asked.

TDP leader T. Devender Goud said while the allocation in the welfare sector was made only due to pressure mounted on Governments, the problem was in the release of funds.

‘Welfare takes backseat’

“Welfare is generally accepted as a subject that takes the backseat and it is in the election year that a major chunk of the funds released is spent,” he said.

Other speakers included Jayaprakash Narayan, Coordinator, Lok Satta Party, Bojja Tarakam, State president, Republican Party of India, Mallepally Lakshmayya, Director, Centre for Dalit Studies, Korivi Vinaya Kumar, State president, Dalit Bahujan Front and John Wesley, vice-president of the Struggle Committee. The round table concluded with participants resolving to call on Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy and represent the matter.

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