Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment

The Scheduled Castes and The Schedules Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989

Posted On: 26 JUL 2022 4:38PM by PIB Delhi

To check and deter crimes against the members of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes, an Act of Parliament namely the "The Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989" is in force. The SC/ST (PoA) Rules, 1995 have been also framed to effectively implement the provisions of the Act.

Section 21 (2) of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities){PoA} Act, 1989 and Rule 3(1) (i) of the PoA Rules, 1995 specifies for the purpose of delineation of “Identified Areas” (commonly known as “Atrocity Prone Areas”) where members of SC/ST are vulnerable to being subjected to atrocities and adoption of necessary measures to ensure their safety. The details of State-wise identified Atrocity Prone Areas is given as Annexure.

Rule 8 of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Rules, 1995, requires the State Government to set up a SC/ST Protection Cell, at the State headquarters, under the charge of a DGP, ADGP/IGP. The SC/ST Protection Cells have been set up in the States/UTs of Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Odisha, Punjab, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, West Bengal, Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Chandigarh, NCT of Delhi, Jammu and Kashmir and Puducherry.

Further, National Helpline against Atrocities (NHAA) on the members of Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes has been also launched by the Department of Social Justice & Empowerment. The objective of the helpline is to generate awareness about the provisions of the Law that are aimed at ending discrimination and provide protection. The NHAA is available on toll-free number ‘14566’ across the country.

The Centrally Sponsored Scheme for the implementation of the PCR Act, 1955 and the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 is in force under which the Central Assistance is provided to the States/UTs mainly for strengthening of the enforcement and judicial machinery, setting up of SC/ST Protection Cells and Special Police Stations, Incentive for inter caste marriages where one of the spouses is a member of a SC, Awareness generation, relief and rehabilitation of the atrocity victims, travelling and Legal Aid.

'Police' and 'Public Order' are State subjects under the Seventh Schedule (List-II) to the Constitution of India. The primary responsibility for implementation of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 rests with the State Governments/UT Administrations.

However, Government of India issues advisories to the State Governments/UT Administrations from time to time for effective implementation of the PoA Act and Rules made thereunder in the letter and spirit.

Ministry of Women and Child Development also implements One Stop Centre and Universalization of Women Helplines across the country as components of the sub-scheme 'Sambal' and Shakti Sadan as a component of sub-scheme ‘Samarthya’ under Umbrella Scheme 'Mission Shakti'.

One Stop Centre, popularly known as Sakhi Centres, the One Stop Centre (OSC) is being implemented across the country since 1st April 2015. The objectives of the One Stop Centre component are to provide integrated support and assistance to women affected by violence, both in private and public spaces under one roof and facilitate immediate, emergency and non-emergency access to a range of services including police, medical, legal aid and counselling, psychological support to fight against any forms of violence against women. As of now, 758 OSCs have been approved and out of which 708 are operational in 35 States/UTs and more than 5.40 lakh women have been assisted so far.

The Universalisation of Women Helpline (WHL) is being implemented since 1st April, 2015 with the aim to provide an immediate and 24 hour emergency and non-emergency response to women across the country by referral service. Under the Scheme, a toll-free 24-hours telecom service through short code 181 is provided to women seeking support and information. Women helpline is operational in 34 States/UTs and handled more than 70.00 lakh calls assisting the aggrieved women.

Shakti Sadan component targets women victims of unfortunate circumstances who are in need of institutional support for rehabilitation and victims of trafficking so that they could lead their life with dignity. The scheme envisages providing shelter, food, clothing and health as well as economic and social security for the women victims of difficult circumstances and trafficking which includes widows, destitute women and aged women.

Annexure

Details of Atrocity Prone Areas

ANDHRA PRADESH

The details of identified Atrocity Prone Areas are as under: -

S. No.	Identified District	Specific areas within District, identified as atrocity prone areas(villages)
1.	Kadapa District	5
2.	Srikakulam District	1
3.	East Godavari (Including Rajahmundry Urban) District	47
	Total	53

2. BIHAR

In the State, 34 districts have been identified as sensitive from the point of view of atrocities against members of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. These districts are Patna, Nalanda, Rohtas, Bhabhua, Bhojpur, Buxer, Gaya, Jehanabad, Nawada, Aurangabad, Saran, Siwan, Gopalganj, Muzaffarpur, Sitamarhi, West Champaran (Betia), West Champaran (Bagaha) East Champaran (Motihari), Vaishali, Darbhanga, Madhubani, Samastipur, Saharsa, Madhepura, Purnia, Bhagalpur, Banka, Munger, Sheikhpura, Begusarai, Khagaria, Katihar, Jamui and Araria.

3. CHHATTISGARH

The details of identified atrocity prone areas are as under: -

S. No.	Identified District	Specific areas within District, identified as atrocity prone areas
1.	Durg District	10
2.	Balrampur District	91
	Total	101

4. GUJARAT

11 districts have been identified as sensitive from the point of occurrence of offences of atrocities: -

Mehsana

Ahmedabad (Rural)

Junagadh

Kutch

Banaskantha

Kheda

Amreli

Rajkot (Rural)

Surendranagar

Vadodara (Rural)

Bharuch

5. JHARKHAND

The Government of Jharkhand has identified following atrocity prone areas in the State: -

S. No.	Identified Districts	Specific areas within District identified as 'atrocity prone' areas
1.	Giridih	Bengabad
2.	Saraikela	Adityapur, Chandil, Nimdih and Saraikela.
3.	Chatra	Tokbul, Dhebo, Kobna and Yogiyara
4.	Khunti	Khuti
5.	Garhwa	Garhwa Subdivision
6.	Dumka	Not Specific
7.	Chaibasa	No such specific atrocity prone areas in West Singhbhum, and Chibasa
8.	Palamu	Husainabad Sub Division
9.	Lohardaga	No area has been identified as “atrocity-prone” areas
10.	Ranchi	Chanho, Mandar, Ratu, Bubdu, Jagarnathpur, Namkum, Bariyatu and Chutia

6. KARNATAKA

The Government of Karnataka has identified following atrocity prone areas in the State: -

S. No.	Identified Districts	Specific areas within District identified as 'atrocity prone' areas
1.	Bangalore (U)	Sampigehalli Sub-Division Bangalore City 1.Basavalingappa Nagar Sampigehalli 2. Bagalur 3.Bandikodigetialli Village 4. Kothanuru Malleswarm Sub Division Bangalore City 1. A.K. Colony 2.Bheemshakthi Nagar
2.	Kalaburagi	Nagaral(Malli) Tg Jawargi
3.	Yadgir	Kembavi, Sorapuar Tq Hogager, Yadgiri Tq

7. MADHYA PRADESH

In the State, 11 districts have been identified, where members of SCs and STs are likely to be subjected to atrocities.

S. No.	Districts	S. No.	Police Stations	Number of Village/ Mohalla
1.	Indore	1	Azadnagar	Mukhliya
		2	Hiranagar	Sukhliya
		3	Simrol	Datoda
		4	Khudail	Dudhiya
		5	Badgonda	Badgonda
		6	Kisanganj	Kisanganj
2.	Vidisha	1	Kotwali	Mohangiri
				Lohangi Mohalla
3.	Morena	1	Ambah	Gurudwara Jagga Mohalla
		2	Station Road	Tussipur
				Subhash Nagar
4.	Bhind	1	Dehat	Mahavir Nagar, Sundarpura, Vikrampura, Near Vidhnati School, BTI Road
				Ramnagar, Bamba Ka Pura, Santosh Nagar, Ashok Nagar, BTI Road
		2	Andori	Lohripura
5.	Gwalior	1	Gwalior	Lohripura
				Chandra Nagar
				Gospura No.02
		2	Sirol	Huravali
		3	Bahodapur	Ramaji ka Pura
		4	Gola ka Mandir	Pintopark
		5	Janakganj	Lakshmiganj
				Gol Pahadi
				Taragamjpul
				Sanjay Nagar
6.	Shivpuri	1	Kotwali	Lalmati Fahahpur
		2	Narwar	Magroni
7.	Ashoknagar	1	Kotwali	Mandsour meel
		2	Dehat	Shankar Colony
8.	Narsinghpur	1	Gotegaon	Bagaspur
9.	Hoshangabad	1	Kotwali	Jumerati Area
				Balaganj Area
				Kothibagar
				Gwaltoli
		2	Itarsi	Purani Itarsi
				Nala Mohalla
				New Yard
				Main Bazar Area
		3	Piparia	Itwara Bazar
				Pachmari Road
		4	Dehat Hoshangabad	Rasuliya
10.	Harda	1	Harda	Housing Board Area
				Manpura
				Khedipura
		2	Timarni	Linepar Mohalla
		3	Chipabad	Khirkiya
11.	Betul	1	Betul	Patel Ward
				Gandhi Ward
				Ambedkar Ward
		2	Ganj Betul	Hamlapur Manzi Nagar
				Javaharward Ganj
		3	Sarni	Sarni
				Pathakeda
				Shobhapur
Grand total 1 to 11			31	53

8. MAHARASHTRA

The Government of Maharashtra has identified following atrocity prone areas in the State: -

S. No.	Identified Districts	Specific areas within District identified as 'atrocity prone' areas
1.	Jolgaon	2
	Total	2

9. ODISHA

The Home Department of the State has identified following atrocity prone areas in the State: -

S. No.	District	Specific areas within District, identified as “atrocity” prone area
1.	Angul	Pallahara, Chendipada, Jarapada Police Stations areas.
2.	Bolangir	Patnagarh Sub-Division area
3.	Balasore	BBaliapala, Basta, Bhogarai, Jaleswar, Remuna, Sora, Khantapara, Sadar Police Stations areas.
4.	Bhadrak	Bhadrak Rural (Sadar, Naikanidihi, Dhusuri, Bansada Police Stations areas
5.	Boudh	Boudh, Baunsuni, Manamunda, Kantamal, Purunakatak, Harabhanga Police Stations areas.
6.	Cuttack	Niali, Athagarh, Guridiujhatia Police Stations areas.
7.	Deogarh	Deogarh, Barkote, Riamal, Kundheigola
8.	Dhenkanal	Sadar, Parjang Police Stations areas
9.	Jagatsinghpur	Jagatsingpur, Biridi, Nuagaon, Raghunathpur, Tirtol, Kujanga, Erasama, Paradeep.
10.	Kalahandi	Dharmagarh, Junagarh, Jaipatna, Koksara, Bhawanipatna Sadar, Kegaon and Bhawanipatna Town areas).
11.	Kandhamal	Entire Kandhamal District is the atrocity prone area as intimated by the S.P.Kandhamal).
12.	Kendrapara	Pattamundai, Marshaghai areas
13.	Keonjhar	Keonjhar Town, Sadar, Patna, Ghasipura, Ghatagaon, Anandapur, Champua, Joda, Barbil .
14.	Nuapada	Sinapali Block
15.	Puri	Sadar, Town, Sea-Beach, Chandrapur, Satyabadi, Brahmagiri, Delang, Kanas, Pipili, Gop, Balanga, Nimapada, krushnaparsad
16.	Rourkela	Rourkela Police District
17.	Rayagada	Kashipur area
18.	Subarnapur	Sonepur, Birmaharajpur.
19.	UPD, BBSR	Balianta, Balipatna, Khandagiri area

10. RAJASTHAN

11 districts have been identified as atrocity prone in the State namely Bharatpur, Shri Ganganagar, Tonk, Alwar, Ajmerl, Pali, Barmer, Hanumangarh, Sikar, Baran and Nagaur.

11. TAMIL NADU The Social Justice and Human Rights Wing in Tamil Nadu has identified 345 villages in 37 districts as ‘Atrocity prone’. In 7 Commissionerates, 27 villages were identified as ‘atrocity prone’ for the year 2020.

The villages have surveyed by the Staff of Social Justice and Human Rights Units in the districts and cases brought to the notice of Superintendent of Police and District Collector for taking precautionary and preventive measures to avoid any untoward incidents/clashes between the Scheduled Castes and non Scheduled Castes.

12. TELANGANA

The details of identified atrocity prone areas are as under: -

S.No.	Identified District	Number of villages in the District, identified as atrocity prone.

1.	Nizamabad Commissionerate	18
2.	Rachakonda Commissionerate	5
3.	RamagundamCommissionerate	9
4.	Adilabad	4
5.	Bhadradri (Kothagudem)	17
6.	Jagityal	1
7.	Mahaboobnagar	5
8.	Nalgonda	6
9.	Narayanpet	1
	Total	66

13. ANDAMAN & NICOBAR ADMINISTRATION

The details of identified atrocity prone areas are as under: -

Identified District	Specific areas within the District, identified as atrocity prone.
North & Middle Andaman District	Kadamtala, Rangat, Baratang