5K crore earmarked for SC welfare left unused by Tamil Nadu govt in last six years

TENKASI: The state government failed to utilise a whopping Rs 5,318 crore out of Rs 75,930 crore funds, which were earmarked under the Scheduled Castes Sub-Plan (SCSP), during the past six financial years, according to an RTI reply from the Adi Dravidar and Tribal Welfare Department.

Madurai-based activist S Karthik, who filed the RTI application, said the 48 departments of the state government had received Rs 75,930 crore for enhancing the livelihoods of SC people residing across Tamil Nadu. "In the 2021-22 fiscal alone, the government left Rs 2,418 crore unused. Further, the government was provided Rs 16,442 crore for the 2022-23 fiscal year under SCSP, but Rs 10,466 crore was left unused as of December," he said.

Moreover, the RTI reply also reveals that these departments spent around Rs 8,865 crore of SCSP funds during the last six years for general schemes which benefit both non-SC and SC people. "The SCSP, which was introduced in 1980, is being effectively implemented by only a few states. It is unfortunate that even the Tamil Nadu government is not utilising the SCSP funds properly despite having district and state-level welfare officers," Karthik said.

To overcome the deficiencies, the RTI activist wants the principal secretary and director of the Adi Dravidar Welfare Department to hold frequent review meetings with district-level officers, display the list of welfare schemes available for the SC people at all village administrative offices, and update all allocation and expenditure details on the department's online portal.

During the May 2022 Assembly session, CPM MLA M Chinnadurai from Gandhavarkottai had demanded the state government to release a white paper on the expenditure incurred under the SCSP. He had also alleged that a large portion of the SCSP fund was being spent on general schemes. "The state and central governments claim that Rs 1.12 lakh crore has been allocated for the welfare of SC people in the past 10 years. The scheduled caste members' livelihoods would have improved leaps and bounds if only the money was utilised properly," the MLA said.

"About 98% of the SC people are landless and they make ends meet through agricultural or industrial labour. Meanwhile, the scholarship money allocated for SC students is getting swindled, and even the benefits of the free housing scheme are being denied to them in recent months. With the Rs 12,000 provided to them by the government, they can't even construct a toilet. On the other hand, the stringent guidelines for spending money for SC people are preventing the officials from implementing various welfare schemes properly. So, SCSP funds are being used to build common roads and overhead tanks. I have brought these issues to the knowledge of the state government," the MLA said.

When contacted by TNIE for comments on the issue, Minister N Kayalvizhi Selvaraj said she was busy with campaign work for the Erode East by-election. Director of Adi Dravidar Welfare T Anand said all the departments had spent 96% to 97% of the funds earmarked under SCSP.