Giving details of the efforts being taken for the welfare of the tribal class of the country, the Central Government has given the details of the future efforts to be made in this direction. The government has also made announcements regarding particularly vulnerable groups in this community. According to the last census data of 2011 in India, the share of tribal community in the population is 8.6 percent. But, even after 75 years of independence, they are at the lowest rung on the ladder of development. The tribal community lags behind in getting basic facilities like education, health, nutrition, drinking water, electricity. Still the target of providing basic facilities to this community has not been achieved.
To find a solution to a challenge, it is necessary to understand that situation deeply. In such a situation, the efforts of the Central Government to conduct research on the weakest section of the tribal community can be effective. The central government is considering conducting a survey to find out the human development index of about 28 lakh people belonging to especially weaker sections or PVTGs. Through this, information will be collected as to how the lives of the tribal people have changed in particular and how government policies are making a difference to their lives. With this survey, a database will be prepared about the tribal groups settled in 22 thousand villages of the country.
In fact, even among the tribes, the need to pay special attention to the vulnerable tribes was realized only after a few decades of independence. The reason for this was that whatever schemes were brought for the development of tribes, the more developed and influential groups of these communities used to take a major part of them. Then in 1973, the UN Dhebar Commission recommended the separation of less developed tribes among the tribes. This group was later renamed as Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group (PVTG). Today, out of 705 tribes, 75 fall in PVTG, ie Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group. Their maximum number is in Odisha. The challenge of development of the tribal community can also be gauged from the fact that 90 percent of their population lives either in forests or hills or in dry areas. These backward areas and countrymen should also get the benefit of India’s growing economic development.
