What Government Does For These Sections

Development and empowerment of scheduled castes (SCs), scheduled tribes (STs), other backward classes (OBCs), minorities, disabled and other social groups in order to bring them at par with the rest of society is a commitment enshrined in the Constitution.

This is to be done by adopting the approach of social justice’ to ensure equal rights, access to benefits and resources and ‘empowerment’ to enable them to develop their potential and capacities as agents of social change, through the process of planned development.
The Government is committed to empowering the socially disadvantaged groups. The stated objectives were:

 Creating an enabling environment that is conducive for these groups to exercise their rights freely, enjoy their privileges and be able to lead a life with confidence and dignity.
 Ensuring removal of disparities, eliminating exploitation and suppression and providing protection to the disadvantaged groups.

 Ensuring that developmental benefits reach the unreached through equitable distribution.

 Ensuring the involvement of the socially disadvantaged groups in the process of planning not merely as beneficiaries but also as participants in the formulation of need-based programmes/projects, as well as their implementation, supervision and monitoring.

 Accelerating the on-going process of improving the socio-economic status of the disadvantaged groups through effective implementation of various policies and programmes and thus bring them at par with rest of the society.
Concerted efforts are being made both at the governmental and non-governmental levels, through effective implementation of various welfare and developmental policies and programmes, towards achieving:

 .Social empowerment, especially through educational development.

 Economic empowerment, through employment and income generation activities and alleviating poverty.

 Social justice, through effective implementation of the existing legislations and other measures for preventing and protecting the disadvantaged groups from atrocities.