Welfare of Denotified Communities

Table of Contents

Welfare of Denotified Communities- Relevance for UPSC Exam

GS Paper 2: Governance, Administration and Challenges- Welfare schemes for vulnerable sections of the population by the Centre and States and the performance of these schemes.

Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment recently informed the parliament about various steps taken by the government for the Development and Welfare of De-notified, Nomadic and Semi-Nomadic Communities.

Development and Welfare Board for De-notified, Nomadic and Semi-Nomadic Communities (DWBDNCs): It was notified by the government in 2021.
- DWBDNCs were constituted for the development and welfare of De-notified, Nomadic and Semi-Nomadic Communities.
Scholarship Schemes: This Ministry is also implementing schemes for pre and post-matric scholarships to DNT students. For Example-
- Ambedkar Pre-Matric and Post-Matric Scholarship for DNTs, a Centrally Sponsored Scheme, was launched for the welfare of those DNT students who are not covered under SC, ST or OBC.
Scheme for Economic Empowerment of DNT Communities (SEED): The SEED Scheme has been launched in February, 2022 for the welfare of DNT Communities.

विमुक्त समुदायों का कल्याण

About: SEED was launched by the Social Justice Ministry with a total outlay of Rs. 200 Crore for the next five years.
Implementation: The DWBDNCs (Development and Welfare Board for De-notified, Nomadic and Semi-Nomadic Communities) has been tasked with the implementation of this scheme.
Significance: The government will be able to identify the gaps in accessing this Scheme by the Denotified, Nomadic and Semi-Nomadic Communities after the SEED Scheme is implemented for some time.
Components of SEED Scheme: It has the following four components
- To provide coaching of good quality for DNT candidates to enable them to appear in competitive examinations,
- To provide Health Insurance to them,
- To facilitate livelihood initiatives at the community level and
- To provide financial assistance for the construction of houses for members of these communities.

The term ‘De-notified Tribes’stands for all those communities which were once notified under the Criminal Tribes Acts, enforced by the British Raj between l87l and I947.
These Acts were repealed by the Independent Indian Government in l952, and these communities were “De-Notified”. A few of these communities which were listed as de-notified were also nomadic.