Problems related to weaker sections of Indian Society (with special reference to Rajasthan): Women, marginalised groups, Dalits, SC&ST and their Welfare schemes.

Sol – 

Girls and Restrictions

Boys and Demands

  • Restrictions confine them to traditional roles, limiting their freedom, autonomy, and personal growth. 
  • Lead to issues like low self-esteem, anxiety, and depression. 
  • Eg- Expectation to be solely responsible for doing household chores and upholding the family’s honor.
  • Burdened by societal demands to conform to rigid masculinity, suppressing their emotions
  • Lead to mental health struggles.Eg- Expectation of being the family’s provider.

Both restrictions on girls and demands on boys reinforce harmful gender norms, perpetuating a cycle of stress, emotional turmoil, and gender inequality. This cycle hinders personal development and societal progress, establishing rigid gender roles.

Bhakti saints like Ramanuja actively encouraged the participation and inclusion of Dalits 

  • Dr. Ambedkar founded the Bahishkrit Hitakarini Sabha (1924) and led a movement against untouchability (1927). Established the “All India Scheduled Castes Federation”; criticized Hindu religious texts for spreading untouchability and worked to ensure “untouchables” could enter religious places and draw water from public wells.
  • Mahatma Gandhi popularized the term “Harijan” (children of God) to counter the negative connotations of caste names. Founded the Harijan Sevak Sangh to eradicate the concept of untouchability from India’s caste system. Published a newspaper Harijan(English), Harijan Bandu (Gujarati), and Harijan Sevak (Hindi);
  • Mother Teresa: The welfare of the destitute is unparalleled.
  • Jyotiba Govindrao Phule ardently worked for the removal of untouchability and to uplift the depressed classes; Satyashodhak Samaj’s main objective was to create a just and equitable social order free of discrimination based on caste, religion or gender.. 

Sol –

Customs contributing to social and economic backwardness:

Measures to address these challenges:

  1. Endogamy: Example: Marriage restricted within the community limits social mobility and increases genetic disorders.
    Primitive Agricultural Practices: Example: Reliance on outdated farming techniques leads to low productivity and income.
  2. Collective Land Ownership: Example: Decision-making complexities hinder investment and development.
  3. Barter System: Example: Dependency on barter limits integration into formal economies.
  4. Taboos and Superstitions: Example: Cultural beliefs restrict access to education, healthcare, and economic opportunities.
  1. Education and Awareness: Example: Promoting modern agricultural practices and financial literacy.
  2. Land Reforms: Example: Facilitating individual land ownership while protecting community interests.
  3. Skill Development and Employment: Example: Providing tailored training and creating job opportunities.
  4. Healthcare Access: Example: Establishing healthcare facilities and promoting modern healthcare practices.
  5. Legal Reforms and Social Awareness: Example: Advocating for legal changes to address discriminatory customs and challenging regressive beliefs through social campaigns.

Sol – 

Problems of the tribal community

Their solutions.

  1. Economic Issues: Restrictions on Slash-and-burn agriculture, migration → atrocities in outer states (e.g., Bhil migrants).
    Educational Challenges: Low literacy rates, incomplete primary education. Degradation of alternate knowledge systems. 
  2. Discriminatory customs: gender bias (e.g., cheda fadna, kukdi).
  3. Healthcare Disparities: High maternal mortality rate (MMR), high infant mortality rate (IMR). Low institutional deliveries. 
  4. Cultural Marginalization and Social Discrimination: Disruption of traditional nomadic lifestyles, cultural loss, Caste-based biases, social exclusion. 
  1. Land Reforms: Promoting modern agricultural practices. Facilitating individual land ownership while protecting community interests. Implementation of the Forest Rights Act.
  2. Education and Awareness: including financial literacy and promoting alternative knowledge systems. 
  3. Social Awareness: Address discriminatory customs and challenging regressive beliefs through social campaigns.
  4. Healthcare Access: Establishing healthcare facilities and promoting modern healthcare practices. 
  5. Skill Development and Employment: Providing tailored training and creating job opportunities. Samarth scheme.

Sol –

Measures that the Rajasthan government has undertaken to improve the status of tribals in the state

  • USR (Smart Village Initiative)- The Hon’ble Governor of Rajasthan has taken up the initiative of adopting a village by every State University in Rajasthan.
    • For developing Smart Village with the purpose of ensuring that it becomes a model village where all the schemes of the Central Government and State Government are effectively implemented and dovetailed with innovative projects initiated by respective universities.
    • 22 state-funded universities have adopted 54 villages in all under phases I and II. 23 villages have been adopted under phase III of USR. 
    • Works for Health, water, sanitation, agriculture, clean energy, animal husbandry, and sustainable development are being carried out. 
  • Rajas Sangh
    • Rajasthan Tribal Area Development Cooperative Federation
    • To save them from moneylenders and make consumer products available at reasonable prices
  • Anuja Nigam
    • Rajasthan SC/ST Finance and Development Cooperative Corporation Limited
    • To provide loans and grants
    • Improve the standard of living
  • Manikya Lal Verma Tribal Research and Training Institute
    • Bring them near to the mainstream
    • Training the tribals
    • Promote research and training to study tribal lives
  • Tribal Advisory Councils (TAC) :under Article 244(1) of Fifth Schedule of the Constitution of India,
    •  to advise the state government on matters related to tribal welfare, development, and protection.
  • Rajasthan Schedule Tribes Commission-2016
  • TRIFED
    • The Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India (TRIFED) is a multi-state cooperative under the Ministry of Tribal Affairs.
    •  TRIFED works to improve the income and livelihood of tribal people while preserving their traditions.
  • Tribal Area Development Department 
    • Established for the upliftment of these tribal people
    • To eradicate their backwardness under Article 46 of the Constitution of India
  • Rajasthan State SC, ST Development Fund Act, 2022
    • Allocation of funds in proportion to population → 14.82 per cent of the State budget for STs.
    • Scheduled Tribes Development Fund (STDF). 
  • For Skilling  → SAMARTH Scheme

Sol –

CONSTITUTIONAL
Fifth Schedule of the Constitution. In Rajasthan: Banswara, Dungarpur, Pratapgarh (fully tribal districts), Udaipur, Rajsamand, Chittorgarh, Sironi Pall partly tribal areas) have been declared as part of Schedule V areas. 10 States provide for the setting up a Tribes’ Advisory Council in each of the States having Scheduled Areas. Sixth Schedule of the Constitution – Provides for the administration of tribal areas in Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram to safeguard the rights of the tribal population in these states. Educational & Cultural Safeguards: Article 15(4): Special provisions for the advancement of other backward classes (including STs).Article 29: Protection of the Interests of Minorities (it includes STs).Article 46: The State shall promote, with special care, the educational and economic interests of the weaker sections of the people, and in particular, of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes, and shall protect them from social injustice and all forms of exploitation.Article 350: Right to conserve a distinct Language, script, or Culture.Political Safeguards: Article 330: Reservation of seats for STs in the Lok Sabha; Article 332: Reservation of seats for STs in State Legislatures.Article 243: Reservation of seats in Panchayats.Administrative Safeguard: Article 275: It provides for the grant of special funds by the Union Government to the State Government for promoting the welfare of Scheduled Tribes and providing them with a better administration.
LEGAL
Panchayats (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996 (PESA): Extends the provisions of the Panchayati Raj Act to Scheduled Areas, empowering local tribes; recognizes the traditional rights and customs of tribal people; grants autonomy to local governance structures. The ST and Other Tribal Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights Act (FRA), 2006) recognizes the rights of forest-dwelling Scheduled Tribes and other traditional forest dwellers over forest land and resources. Protection of Civil Rights Act, 1955SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, Bonded Labour System Abolition Act, 1976

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