Eager to revive its image among the under-privileged sections of the society,the United Progessive Alliance (UPA) is keen to ensure that the funds spent by all the central ministries are earmarked for the marginalised groups,particularly the Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs),in proportion to their population. The Planning Commission is actively considering a proposal of the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment that all union ministries earmark at least 15 per cent of their respective Gross Budgetary Support (GBS) for the welfare schemes of SCs and STs in the next fiscal. The proposal by the social justice ministry amply exemplifies UPAs eagerness to woo the SCs/STs ,who are believed to have drifted away from from the Congress party to regional parties championed by regional leaders like Mayawati and Mulayam Singh Yadav. So the UPA leadership is understood to have unanimously endorsed the thought of outlaying huge funds for the welfare of the marginalised populace in a bid to exemplify its thrust on inclusiveness,sources said. Recently,Prime Minister Manmohan Singh too had directed the Planning Commission to ensure that the funds allocated for the socially disadvantaged groups SCs/STs and OBCs are spent in a time-bound manner. The move comes at a time when the Congress,under party general secretary Rahul Gandhi,is making a vigorous bid to regain its lost ground in the politically crucial Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. With the finance ministry agreeing to a 15 per cent hike in GBS,the overall tone of the next Budget is set to be on the social sector,the sources pointed out. Among the major social sector programmes that are likely to get major allocations include the food security bill and right to education for all. Sources said the Food Security Bill,which aims to provide subsidised grain at Rs 3 per kg to Below Poverty Line (BPL) households,would mean an expenditure of Rs 25,000 crore (on the basis of the current BPL population). But interestingly in pursuit of its aam aadmi agenda,the UPA II has withdrawn its focus from the rural development schemes,except the flagship Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act,to the social sector schemes. The Prime Minister had asked the Plan panel to closely monitor the implementation of schemes specially focused on this segment of society and ensure that the benefits reach the masses. The Plan panel has accordingly mooted a separate independent evaluation office (IEO) to assess the extent to which the governments flagship schemes are benefiting the poor. The evaluation of the IEO would be different from the Mid-Term Appraisal in the sense that the IEO would look at the performance of specific social welfare schemes,while the MTA would take a comprehensive stock of the whole plan strategy.
