President Droupadi Murmu has said that the country will become truly developed only when the tribal people also become developed. Addressing the nation on the eve of Janjatiya Gaurav Divas this evening, the President said, the fast-paced progress of the people of the tribal communities is the national priority. She said the nation wants that the centuries-old identities of the tribal communities remain intact and at the same time, they continue to march ahead on the path of modern development.
President Murmu underlined that the present government is taking forward the journey of tribal development and welfare at a fast pace. Many campaigns and programs are being implemented on a large scale. She pointed out that special measures have been taken to provide all facilities to the tribal people in all national programs of development and welfare. The President said, special schemes are also being implemented for the benefit of the tribal communities and it is being ensured that the benefits of major national schemes reach all tribal beneficiaries in a timely manner.
The President stated that the PM-JANMAN Abhiyan launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the day of Janajatiya Gaurav Divas last year aims to bring about comprehensive development of the people of the Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group, PVTG communities. Under this campaign, a target has been set to provide many facilities to the people of the PVTG communities before the time limit of three years, with an expenditure of more than 24 thousand crores. President Murmu highlighted that this year, on the birth anniversary of the Father of the Nation Mahatma Gandhi, the Central Government has launched the ‘Dharti Aba Janjati Gram Utkarsh Abhiyan’ from the land of Bhagwan Birsa Munda. She emphasised that the objective of this campaign, with an allocation of 80 thousand crore rupees, is to ensure that every tribal person gets the benefit of government schemes. More than five crore tribal people will benefit from this nationwide campaign.
The President said the target of eliminating Sickle Cell Anemia from the tribal society is included under the goal of building a developed India by 2047. She said it is noteworthy that the allocation of funds for the Development Action Plan for Scheduled Tribes has increased manifold during the last decade. The budget of the Ministry of Tribal Affairs for the year 2024-25 is 13 thousand crore rupees which is 74 percent more than last year’s budget.
President Murmu observed that a new consciousness was being spread across the country for tribal pride and the ideals of the Constitution. She said this consciousness is being transformed into action. The President said this spirit will become the foundation of the bright future of the entire country, including the tribal society.
President Murmu said, that for ages, people of tribal society have been enriching the civilization and culture of the country. She said the eternal life values of the society are visible in the story of Ramayana. She added that during his long exile, Lord Ram lived with the people of the tribal society like one of them. He adopted the forest dwellers and the forest dwellers adopted Lord Ram. The President said, this spirit of affinity and harmony, found in the tribal society, is the basis of the country’s culture and civilization.
Conveying her greetings to the citizens on the occasion of Janajatiya Gaurav Divas, President Murmu said, the nation is commencing the year-long celebration of the 150th birth anniversary of ‘Dharti Aaba’ Bhagwan Birsa Munda. On behalf of all her fellow citizens, she paid homage to the sacred memory of Bhagwan Birsa Munda.
