Identify young people to be the voice of deprived, says Gond

Bhubaneswar : School and Mass Education and ST & SC Development Minister Nityananda Gond on Friday called for awareness programmes to identify young people to be the voice of the deprived and taking various livelihood related programmes to the grassroots.

Reviewing the work of ST, SC Development and Minorities and Backward Classes Welfare department, the minister directed the officials to come up with a 100-Day Action Plan and a Vision Document to take the reach of the department to a new level.

Gond also asked the officials to go for a new scheme to construct Multi-purpose Community Centres for tribal people across the State and Urban Residential Programmes in and around Bhubaneswar for the accommodation of tribal family members and students.

Calling for inclusion of Class XI and XII students under the ANWESHA Scheme to provide quality English medium education for bright tribal boys and girls in urban areas, the minister also stressed the need for more hostel facilities for SC and OBC boys and girls across the State through State schemes as they are still facing difficulties while availing higher education.

In a move to boost the economic condition of the people, Gond asked the officials to make provision for procurement of minor forest produce at gram panchayat level.

During his review, the minister also suggested that Pradhan Mantri Anusuchit Jaati Abhyuday Yojana (PM-AJAY) should be made people-centric. Stating that timely disbursal of agricultural inputs must be ensured for livelihood schemes like Mukhyamantri Janajati Jeevika Mission, the minister asked the senior officials to include more and more PVTG groups through State schemes and Pradhan Mantri Janjati Nyaya Maha Abhiyan (PM-JANMAN).

Terming the unused government buildings (both under State and Centre jurisdictions) as sheer waste of the public exchequer, the minister advised the department officials to map such structures across the State and use them as hostels for SC,ST, OBC and minority communities across Odisha.

Praising Koraput Coffee as a unique tribal product from Odisha, which is gaining world-wide praise from the connoisseurs of quality and organic coffee, Gond called for up-scaling the product so that the tribal groups involved in processing and cultivation could benefit.