Five increases have been made to the tribal welfare budget since 2014. Science is included in the curriculum, and the cultures and skills of the tribes are being promoted while still teaching the children in their native languages. In a statement released on Thursday, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi listed these initiatives as examples of those taken by his administration.
Our tribal children and youngsters have made progress after learning in their mother tongue,” the prime minister said in his opening remarks at the Aadi Mahotsav. Young people had to become separatists because of social isolation and lack of adult supervision, but they have since reintegrated into society with the help of the internet and other technologies. This flow of “sabka saath, sabka vikas, sabka vishwas, and sabka prayas” reaches every person in every corner of the country. This is the meeting of ‘aadi and aadhunikta,’ the foundation on which the soaring structure of the new India will be built.
Modi stated, “Education and the future of tribal children, situated in any corner of the country, is my priority,” while outlining the goals of the new education strategy. In a positive development, the number of residential schools following the Eklavya Model increased from 80 in 2014 to 500 in 22. Approximately one lakh students have benefited from the opening of the 400 or more schools that have already opened. In addition to doubling funding for tribal student scholarships, the budget also calls for the hiring of 38,000 new teachers and school staff.
Modi argued that enhancing tribal prestige could be achieved through initiatives that emphasised tribal art, craft, cuisine, and commerce. He claims that conservationist ideals are integral to traditional tribal culture. The Prime Minister has been known to gift tribally crafted items to visiting dignitaries. He elaborated, saying, “The tribal lifestyle in India conveys solutions to problems like global warming and climate change. Sustainable development can learn a lot from the tribal communities.
The government has established more than 3,000 Van Dhan Kendras as part of the Van Dhan Mission, and 90 minor forest products, seven times as many as in 2014, are now included in the MSP.
