Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): Prime Minister Narendra Modi increased the allocation of funds for the welfare of tribal communities drastically after coming to power, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said here on Friday.
He was speaking at `Van Samiti Sammelan', a program where a bonus was distributed to collectors of forest produce such as Tendu leaves.
"This is a government of the poor, Scheduled Tribes, Dalits and Backward Classes. During Congress government's time, only Rs 21,000 crore were provided for the welfare of (tribal) people, but after Modi came to power in 2014, it has been enhanced to Rs 78,000 crore," Shah said.
He also unveiled a plaque announcing the change of status of 827 `forest villages' into `revenue villages'. There was a demand that these areas be declared revenue villages to ensure their development as there are restrictions on undertaking projects in forest areas.
Terming the decision as historic, the Union minister said that it fulfilled a long-pending demand.
The Modi government has resolved to construct houses for each and every individual by 2022, Shah further said.
The Madhya Pradesh government has also decided to provide 20 per cent bonus to forest societies, he noted.
Scheduled Tribes account for 21 per cent of Madhya Pradesh's population.
Several other Union ministers including Jyotiraditya Scindia, Prahlad Patel, Faggan Singh Kulaste and L Murugan besides state chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, his cabinet colleagues Vijay Shah, Bhupendra Singh, Narottam Mishra and Vishwas Sarang, BJP general secretary Kailash Vijaywargiya and state BJP chief V D Sharma were among those present.
Speaking at the function earlier, Chouhan highlighted the steps taken by his government for the welfare of tribal population, especially the decision to convert 827 out of 925 forest villages into revenue ones.
