Tribal area development programme (TADP)/tribal sub plan (TSP)
In the Fifth Five Year Plan, for the first time, a strategy of earmarking funds for development of ST was evolved. Because of the concentration of ST population in specific areas, the instrument of the TSP was developed to ensure the flow of benefits from all sectoral programmes and to provide integrated delivery of services in the tribal areas. In the guidelines issued to the state government, the modalities of quantifying funds from identifiable programmes, and tailoring them to the needs of the tribal people and areas-where necessary-were stipulated. Accordingly, separate sub-plans were formulated covering 63 per cent of the tribal population in the country in 16 states and two Union Territories The TSP areas were divided into 180 Integrated Tribal Development Projects for operational purposes.
A high priority was accorded to protective measures and the elimination of exploitation. The exploitation in tribal areas occurs in such activities as liquor vending, land alienation, moneylending and collection of forest produce. The states have enacted law/regulations to prohibit transfer of land from tribal to non-tribal. In recent years, state governments have also reviewed the laws and taken appropriate measures to plug the loopholes.
The broad objectives of the TSP are
1. to narrow the gap between the levels of development of tribal and other areas and
2. to improve the quality of the tribal by freeing them from exploitation in the spheres of land alienation, indebtedness, bonded labour and malpractices in exchange of agricultural and forest produce.
Excise and forest policies have been re viewed and suitable measures taken to end the exploitation in tribal areas. In development programmes, priority was given to agriculture and allied sectors, irrigation facilities and forest-based and other industries. Infrastructure like roads and rural electrification was linked with the economic programmes. Agricultural programmes were so oriented as to provide increased income to cultivators. Efforts were made to induce a change in traditional agricultural methods.
Programmes for imparting training in agro-and forest-based industries were taken up, so as to create opportunities of gainful employment. In many states, tribal development corporations were established to play a key role in bringing about a new relationship between the tribal and the market economic through an integrated credit-cum-marketing service. The most backward groups among the tribal communities, many of them at a pre-agricultural stage of the economy, were identified, and special programmes were taken up for their development. The administrative structure in tribal areas was reviewed and restructured, so as to provide effective services to the tribal people. The areas under and restructured, so as to provide effective services to the tribal people. the areas under the Fifth Schedule have been rationalized, so as to provide more effective protection to the tribals and for better implementation of plans.
The programmes under the tsp are supported by sectoral outlays in the state plan, central programmes and institutional finance available for different programmes. A scheme of Special Central Assistance was introduced during the Sixth Five Year Plan. Under the scheme, financial assistance in the from of outright grants is given by the GOI to the state government implementing the tsp, over and above the funds allocated to the state governments in the state tsp. the sca forma part of tsp strategy for achieving the larger goal of enhancing the pace of socio-economic development in most backward tribal areas. The scheme is primarily meant to support family-oriented income-generating activities and infrastructure incidentals(not exceeding 30 per cent of the total outlay)required thereof. The scheme covers 23 tsp state and Union Territories, including north-eastern state of Assam, Manipur and Tripura.
National Agriculture Insurance Scheme
Climatic variability caused by erratic rainfall pattern, increase in the severity of drought, floods and cyclones, and rising temperatures, have been the cause of uncertainty and risk, resulting in huge losses in the agricultural production and the livestock population in India. The NAIS for crops has been implemented since the 1999-2000 rabi season with the objective of providing insurance coverage in the event of failure of any of the notified crops as a result of nature calamities, pests and diseases. The scheme is available to all the farmers (both loanees and non-loanees), irrespective of their size of holding and operates on the basis of area approach. It envisages the coverage of all food crops(cereals, millets and pulse), oilseeds and other commercial/horticultural crops, in respect of which past yield date are available for an adequate number of years.at present, 10 per cent subsidy in premium is available to small and marginal farmers, which is to be shared equally by the centre and state governments.
The scheme is implemented by 23 state and two Union Territories. Sine the inception of the scheme and until rabi 2006-07, about 971 lakh farmers had been covered. The area covered was 156 mha and the sum insured Rs 92618 crore. Claims to the tune of about Rs 9855 crore had become payable against the premium income of about Rs 2943 crore, benefiting nearly 270 lakh farmers.
Despite high claim ratio (1:3.3) and low premium rates, particularly for food and oilseeds crops, farmers(particularly non-loanee farmers) are not coming forward to avail of crop insurance in a big way. To overcome some of the limitations and to make the scheme more farmer-friendly, a Joint Group was constituted to suggest improvements required in the existing crop insurance schemes. The Group made an in-depth study and has made important recommendations like reduction in the unit area of insurance to gram panchayat for major crops, improving the basis of calculation of threshold yield, higher indemnity level coverage of pre-sowing/planting risks and post-harvest losses, personal accident insurance cover, and so on. Based on the recommendations of the Joint Group and views/comment of various stakeholders, the existing NAIS was to be modified by the GOI 2008-09
Pilot weather-based crop insurance scheme(WBCIS)
As announced in the union budget for 2007-08, the WBCIS was implemented in the selected areas of Karnataka on a pilot basis. The WBCIS intends to provide insurance protection to farmers against adverse weather condition, such as deficit and excess rainfall, which are deemed to adversely impact the crop production. It has the advantage of settling the claim within the shortest possible time.
The WBCIS is based on actuarial rates of premium but to make the scheme attractive, the premium actually charged from farmers has been restricted to at par with the NAIS. The Agriculture Insurance Company of India Ltd. (AIC) has implemented the pilot WBCIS in Karnataka during kharif 2007 season, covering eight rain-fed crop, insuring crop on nearly 50000 ha a sum insure of Rs 50 crore. The WBCIS is being implemented in 2007-08 on a larger scale in selected areas of 12 state for rabi 2007-08 season. In addition to AIC, private insurers like ICICI-LOMBARD, General Insurance Company (GIC) and IFFCO-TOKIO General Insurance Company have also been included for selected areas.
Infrastructure development programmes
A brief description of major programmes in this category follows.
Minimum need programmes (MNP)
The availability of certain public services, facilities and amenities represents real income and constitutes past of the standard of living. It is particular with respect to the community facilities and civic amenities that rural people are at the great disadvantage vis-à-vis their urban counterparts. Duly recognizing the need for the provision of such facilities and services in rural area, the GOI developed and launched a scheme called the MNP in the Fifth Five Years Plan. The MNP initially included eight components. During the Sixth Five Years Plan., one more component- adult education-was added, and in the Seventh Five Years Plan, the list of items was further expanded with three more components, namely, rural domestic energy, rural sanitation and public distribution system (PDS). So now, there are 12 components of the MNP
The concept of the MNP emerged and crystallised out of the experience of the previous plans, which showed that neither growth nor social consumption can be sustained-much less accelerated-without being mutually supportive. The main objective of the MNP was to provide the rural population, particularly the rural poor, with access to certain items of social consumption, which form an integral part of the basic needs. It was envisaged that certain national level norms would be fixed with respect to each of these items and that within the specified time frame, all areas in the country would achieve these national goals. The programme emphasizes the urgency for providing social services according to the nationally accepted norms within a stipulated time frame. To optimize benefits, all the 12 components of the MNP are taken as a package, and related to specific areas and beneficiary groups. The programme is essentially an aid to human resource development. The provisionee or subsidized services through public agencies is expected to improve the consumption levels of those living below the poverty line, and thereby improve the productive efficiency of both the rural and urban workers. The integration of social consumption programmes with economic development programmes is necessary to accelerate growth and to ensure the achievement of plan objectives.
In the absence of such a programme, the pressure for investments in the development of infrastructure and production sectors left a relatively small allocation for social services. Even such outlays-as were available-we