Welfare Schemes for SC/ST and Backward Classes

Welfare provisions for Scheduled Castes (SC), Scheduled Tribes (ST), and Other Backward Classes (OBC) form an important part of India’s social justice framework. These measures combine constitutional safeguards, targeted scholarships, livelihood support, and institutional finance to reduce historical disadvantage and improve access to education, jobs, and basic services.

Tribal Development and Welfare Initiatives

• Dharti Aaba Janjatiya Gram Utkarsh Abhiyan (DA-JGUA): Implemented from FY 2024-25 to 2028-29, the scheme has a total outlay of ₹79,156 crore. It aims to saturate critical infrastructure gaps in 63,843 tribal-dominated villages across 30 States and Union Territories.
• PM-JANMAN Mission: The Pradhan Mantri Janjati Adivasi Nyaya Maha Abhiyan is operational from FY 2023-24 to 2025-26 with an outlay of ₹24,104 crore. It includes 11 critical interventions for 75 Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs) across 18 states and one Union Territory.
• PM-JANMAN Solar Scheme: A ₹515 crore component under the mission provides off-grid solar home lighting systems and mini-grids. It is intended to electrify 1 lakh un-electrified PVTG households.

Livelihood and Education for Scheduled Castes

• SHRESHTA Scheme: The Scheme for Residential Education for Students in High Schools in Targeted Areas provides quality residential education to SC students. In 2025-26, it admitted 2,915 SC students in 151 private residential schools and reimbursed ₹79.37 crore to these institutions.
• PM-AJAY: The Pradhan Mantri Anusuchit Jaati Abhyuday Yojana supports livelihood assistance, skill development, and infrastructure. In 2025, ₹307.28 crore was disbursed under the scheme to support 25,930 SC beneficiaries.
• NAMASTE Scheme: The National Action for Mechanized Sanitation Ecosystem seeks to transition sewer and septic tank workers to safer, mechanized operations. The scheme has profiled 19,492 workers and also includes waste pickers as a target group.
• NSFDC Credit Support: The National Scheduled Castes Finance and Development Corporation extends concessional loans and skill training to SC beneficiaries. The annual family income eligibility limit is ₹3 lakh.

Support Systems for OBC, EBC and DNT Communities

• PM-YASASVI: The PM Young Achievers Scholarship Award Scheme for Vibrant India provides fully centrally funded scholarship assistance. It covers eligible students from OBC, Economically Backward Classes (EBC), and Denotified, Nomadic, and Semi-Nomadic Tribes (DNT) categories.
• National Fellowships: The National Fellowship for Scheduled Caste Students provides 2,000 slots per year for M.Phil. and Ph.D. candidates. The National Fellowship for Other Backward Classes (NFOBC) provides 1,000 annual slots.

Constitutional and Legal Judgments on Reservations

• State of Punjab v. Davinder Singh (2024): In August 2024, a seven-judge Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court delivered a 6:1 verdict. It upheld the power of state governments to create sub-classifications within SC and ST categories to distribute reservation benefits more equitably.
• Backwardness Principle: The constitutional and policy framework for reservations is rooted in historical and social backwardness rather than economic status alone.
• Income and Creamy Layer: In the context of OBC reservations, salary income by itself is not treated as the sole basis for determining creamy layer status, particularly in cases involving employees of Public Sector Undertakings and the private sector.

Key Provisions and Scheme Features

Key Prelims Takeaways

• DA-JGUA: A five-year tribal development mission with an outlay of ₹79,156 crore.
• PM-JANMAN: Targets 75 PVTGs across 18 states and one Union Territory.
• Solar Support: The PM-JANMAN Solar Scheme allocates ₹515 crore for electrifying 1 lakh PVTG households.
• SC Education Support: SHRESHTA provides residential school admission support to SC students through private institutions.
• SC Livelihood Assistance: PM-AJAY covers livelihood, skill development, and infrastructure support for SC beneficiaries.
• OBC/EBC/DNT Scholarships: PM-YASASVI is a fully centrally funded scholarship scheme for these categories.
• Reservation Jurisprudence: The 2024 Davinder Singh judgment allowed state-level sub-classification within SC and ST reservations.