“SCs, STs, OBCs is biggest government welfare schemes for poor: Modi

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Wednesday that people from disadvantaged sections like SCs, STs and OBCs are the biggest beneficiaries of his government’s welfare schemes as he accused the previous Congress dispensations of neglecting them and never appreciating their role in the country’s progress. Speaking at the launch of the PM-SURAJ national portal, he cited the election of Ram Nath Kovind and Droupadi Murmu, who come from Dalit and tribal communities respectively, as president to assert that the BJP’s efforts to ensure that those from deprived sections reach top positions will continue. The opposition made every effort to ensure their defeat, he said. Taking a swipe at the Opposition, Prime Minister Modi told the gathering that consisted of people from disadvantaged groups, “How can anyone say I have no family when I have brothers and sisters like you.” Modi said that the biggest beneficiaries of schemes like free ration, free medical treatment, pucca houses, toilets and Ujjwala gas connection are the people on the periphery, the deprived segments. “SCs, STs, OBCs are the biggest beneficiaries of government welfare schemes for the poor. Now we are working with the goal of saturation in these schemes,” the prime minister said. The Pradhan Mantri Samajik Utthan and Rozgar Adharit Jankalyan (PM-SURAJ) national portal aims to provide credit support to eligible individuals across the country including those from Scheduled Castes and backward classes and sanitation workers. This initiative is set to facilitate financial empowerment and enable entrepreneurship opportunities for the most disadvantaged sections of society. PM Modi said one lakh beneficiaries from deprived sections have been given Rs 720 crore assistance till now. He said the SURAJ portal will facilitate financial assistance to the disadvantaged sections of society, similar to direct benefit transfers from other government schemes, and the process will be free from middlemen, commissions and recommendations. “Such a system of DBT was unimaginable during the previous governments,” he said.

The prime minister also spoke about the distribution of Ayushman Bharat Cards and PPE kits to Safai Mitras engaged in sewer and septic tank cleaning. Talking about the goal of Viksit Bharat by 2047, the prime minister said that it cannot be achieved without the development of the deprived segments. He said that he has broken away from the mindset of the past and it is being ensured that facilities available to others like gas connection, bank accounts, toilets, etc. are also provided to Dalits, backwards, deprived and tribals. The prime minister pointed out that many generations of deprived segments were wasted in just arranging for the basic amenities. “After 2014, the government reached the segments devoid of any hope and made them partners in the nation’s development,” he said. The prime minister also mentioned schemes for nomadic and semi-nomadic communities and NAMASTE (National Action for Mechanised Sanitation Ecosystem) scheme for Safai Karamcharis. Talking about the elimination of the inhuman practice of manual scavenging, he pointed out that 60,000 sufferers have been given financial assistance so that they can rebuild a life of dignity. “The government is making all possible efforts to empower the SC, ST and  OBC communities”, PM Modi said and informed that the assistance provided to them by various institutions has been doubled in the last 10 years. Lakhs and crores of rupees were “only associated with scams” during the previous governments, he said and affirmed spending the money for the welfare of Dalits and the deprived and for the development of the country. He mentioned increasing scholarships for SC, ST and OBC youth, reservation of 27 percent seats for OBC in the all-India quota of medical seats, making inroads for OBC students in the NEET examination, and assistance from National Overseas Scholarship for students from underprivileged communities to pursue Master and PhD degrees abroad. He added that the amount of national fellowship has also been increased to help students pursue PhD in science-related subjects.

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