Assembly approves Rs 63,273 cr budget for Agriculture, Tribal Welfare

RAIPUR,CG,INDA: In the Chhattisgarh Assembly on Monday, a budget of ₹63,273.82 crore was approved for the Agriculture and Tribal Welfare Department, overseen by Minister Ramvichar Netam. This includes ₹38,271.21 crore for Scheduled Tribes, ₹13,792.21 crore for Scheduled Castes, and ₹7056.53 crore for agriculture-related expenses. Additionally, significant allocations were made for urban and rural welfare programs, backward class development, and agricultural research and education.

While responding to discussions on budget demands, Minister Netam emphasized that the government is committed to uplifting villages, farmers, youth, and marginalized communities in line with Modi’s guarantees. He highlighted that under PM Narendra Modi’s leadership, targeted planning has led to visible progress for tribal communities. He cited that Chhattisgarh now has a tribal Chief Minister, and the President of India belongs to a special backward tribe, reflecting the government’s dedication to tribal welfare.

For the 2025-26 financial year, a ₹2956.40 crore provision has been made for Tribal Welfare Department schemes, including ₹2205.19 crore for Scheduled Tribes, ₹531.17 crore for Scheduled Castes, and ₹220.03 crore for other backward and minority communities. The Tribal Sub-Plan alone has a ₹40,800.76 crore budget, while the Scheduled Castes Sub-Plan has ₹14,036.49 crore.

Netam stated that several programs are focused on the socio-economic development of tribal and Scheduled Caste-dominated villages. A key initiative is the Prime Minister’s Tribal Justice Maha Abhiyan (PM-Janman), which prioritizes the development of five special backward tribes in Chhattisgarh: Baiga, Pahari Korba, Kamar, Abujhmadia, and Birhor. To support this, the state has allocated ₹300 crore for their development. He also noted that 59,800 families from these tribes live in 2,161 settlements across 18 districts, with a total population of around 2.29 lakh.

Under the Nayee Nella Nar and Dharti Aba Tribal Village Utkarsh Abhiyan, the government is working on infrastructure development in 6,000 villages, including roads, electricity, water supply, hospitals, and irrigation facilities. Netam reaffirmed that these projects, under the Government of India’s supervision, aim to integrate remote tribal communities into the mainstream of development.