With an aim of reaching out to 22000 Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTG) majority tribal habitations and PVTG families in 200 districts across the country, Union Ministry of Tribal Affairs has initiated an Information, Education, and Communication (IEC) campaign for the Pradhan Mantri Janjati Adivasi Nyaya Maha Abhiyan (PM-JANMAN), from today onwards. Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi launched the PM-JANMAN on Janjatiya Gaurav Diwas (November 15, 2023), from the Khunti District of Jharkhand.

Campaign Reach:

The comprehensive IEC campaign has started initially in 100 districts, covering approximately 500 blocks and 15,000 PVTG habitations across 18 states and the Union Territory of Andaman and Nicobar Islands. In phase II, it will cover remaining districts. 

This campaign is an effort aimed at saturating PVTG families with individual entitlements and habitations with basic facilities, by making these tribal communities aware about their entitlements.  During the campaign period,  Aadhar card, Community certificate and Jan Dhan accounts will be provided  as these are basic requirements for other schemes such as issue of Ayushman card, PM Kisan Samman Nidhi, Kisan credit card etc. 

This initiative will ensure to cover every PVTG household that has remained unreached because of distance, lack of road and digital connectivity and will provide facilities at their doorstep. Places like Haat Bazar, CSC, Gram panchayat, Anganwadi, Multipurpose centre, Vandhan Vikas Kendras, Krishi Vigyan Kendras will be used to organise these events. 

Mission Objective:

The Union Cabinet has approved the mission which focuses on 11 critical interventions related to 9 key aligned Ministries/Departments, with budgetary outlay of Rs. 24,104 crores (Central Share: Rs.15,336 crore and State Share: Rs.8,768 crore) from FY 2023-24 to 2025-26 under the Development Action Plan for Scheduled Tribes (DAPST).

List of 11 Interventions of 9 Ministries

Other 10 interventions involving other schemes and Ministries/Departments have also been identified which are crucial for ensuring the holistic development of the PVTGs like PM Garib Kalyan Yojna, Ayushman card, PM Kisan Samman Nidhi, Kisan credit Card, Resolving pending cases of Individual and Community Forest rights and so on.  

Detailed Action Plan:

During National Manthan Shivir held on December 15, 2023, an implementation strategy of the mission was discussed, where more than 700 officers from Central and State governments brainstormed jointly.  Sectoral Workshops were organised during which the 9 Ministries/Departments prepared a detailed Action Plan. This plan, reflecting the commitment of States, has been presented to the High-Powered Committee under the Mission, comprising Cabinet Ministers of the respective Ministries. It was pointed out that many families in these communities do not have Aadhar, caste certificate and Jan Dhan account, because of which it may be difficult for them to avail the benefit of different schemes.  Detailed discussion was held with UIDAI, CSC, Ministry of Agriculture and PMJAY, other departments, along with the DMs of these 100 districts to saturate these basic requirements in campaign mode in one week. 

Campaign Activities:

Based on this needs assessment, a nationwide IEC campaign will be operational from December 25, 2023.  A part of the campaign will also comprise of Beneficiary Saturation Camps and Health Camps. These camps will focus on providing immediate benefits under schemes for individual/household benefits and health related issues in PVTG habitations.   Awareness material like pamphlets, video, wall paintings, Jingles, Thematic Wall Paintings, Cultural Programs, are expected to be utilized in local and tribal languages. Officers at District level have been assigned for each district to supervise the campaign, while the State level officers will coordinate with different line departments of State governments to ensure the success of the campaign and Mission. Further, the Tribal Research Institutes in various States will assist to plan and execute these activities at the District, Block, and Tribal Habitation levels.

Social Media Engagement:

The hashtags #EmpoweringTribalsTransformingIndia and #PMJANMAN will be strategically employed across all social media handles/posts, amplifying the campaign's impact and fostering a broader online dialogue.

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NB/VM