[67th BPSC] Bihar: Human Development-III

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Social Welfare
  • A broad definition of social welfare may include all organized societal responses that promote the social well-being of a population, mainly belonging to poor, vulnerable and marginalized sections like Dalits, Mahadalits, Backward Classes, Extretnely Backward Classes, Minorities, Women and other weaker sections of society.
  • This would include education, health, social security for adults and children, social insurance, services for those with physical and mental disabilities, and numerous other related activities.
  • Welfare of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes
    • The welfare of Scheduled Castes (SC) and Scheduled Tribes (ST) is essential for holistic development of society. Towards this, the State Government has formed a separate Department in April, 2007.
    • The SC and ST together constitute about 17.2 percent of the state’s total population, according to 2011 census — Scheduled Castes (15.9 percent) and Scheduled Tribes (1.3 percent).
      • The districts with a share of more than 20 percent scheduled caste and scheduled tribe population are — Nalanda, Kaimur, Gaya, Arwal, Nawada, Aurangabad, Vaishali and Sheikhpura.
    • The major schemes run by the Department of SC and ST Welfare for their social advancement are:
    • Mukhyamantri Anusuchit Jati & Anusuchit Janjati Medhabritti Yojana started in 2008-09,
      • under which one time financial assistance of Rs. 10,000 is given to SC&ST students who pass 10th standard final examination from Bihar School Examination Board (BSEB) with first division.
        • This scheme was revised from 2016-17 and those SC&ST students who pass 10th standard final exam in 2nd division are provided one time financial assistance of Rs.8000/- & those SC&ST students who pass in 1st division are provided Rs. 10000/- as one time financial assistance.
      • During 2016-17, a new scheme was introduced for SC&ST girl students who pass 12th Standard final exam in 1st & 2nd division from Bihar School Examination Board (BSEB) get Rs.15,000/- and Rs.I0,000/- respectively.
      • In 2020-21, an amount of Rs. 124.43 crore and Rs. 4.00 crore was allocated respectively for SC and ST students who have passed 10th standard examination with 1st & 2nd division.
      • Similarly, Rs. 63.19 Crore and Rs. 3.26 Crore were earmarked respectively for SC&ST girl students who pass 10+2 level examination with first or second division.
      • Also, for Students in higher secondary level, a provision of Rs. 50 Crore has been made for SC and Rs. 15 crore for ST category respectively.
    • Scholarships for Children or Musahar and Bhuiya Community:
      • To encourage spread Of education among Musahar and Bhuiya Community, Rs. 100 is given as scholarship per month to students in Grades 1-6.
      • For 2020-21, an amount of Rs. 20.24 crore was given as scheme expenditure under the scheme, and a sum of Rs, 2.40 crore for establishment and committed expenditure.
    • Residential Schools:
      • The Department of SC&ST Welfare is running 66 residential schools for SC students and 21 residential schools for ST students, which together have the capacity of accommodating 25,600 SC students and 7720 ST students.
        • The State Government provides fund for all basic necessities of the students, like dally needs, teaching—learning material, food, clothes, medicines etc.
      • The State Government has decided to upgrade all the residential schools to 10+2 level. Presently, on an estimated cost of 51 crore per school 720 seater residential school buildings have been constructed.
      • The new building will also have facilities like residence facility for teaching and non-teaching staff, library, playing field, etc.
      • During 2020-21 for construction and renovation of SC&ST residential schools and hostels, budget provision of Rs. 308.70 crore was earmarked.
    • Hostels: The Department of SC&ST Welfare is running 111 hostels for welfare of SC&ST students by providing residential facility together with cots, mattresses, RO, etc. Old hostel buildings are constructed in a phased manner.
    • Mukhyamantri Anusuchit Jati and Anusuchit Janjati Civil Sewa Protsahan Yojana:
      • Under this State scheme, SC&ST candidates of Bihar who qualify preliminary exam conducted by Bihar Public Service Commission are given one time incentive amount of Rs. 50,000/-.
      • Further, SC&ST candidates of Bihar who qualify preliminary exam conducted by Union Public Service Commission are given one time incentive amount of Rs. 1 lakh to prepare for next stage of competitive examinations.
      • In 2020-21, there was budget of Rs. 10.00 crore for SC and Rs. 50 lakh for ST candidates.
    • SC & ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act 1989 and Rule 1995:
      • This is meant to protect the members of SC/ST community from the atrocities by non-SC/ST community members.
      • This is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme, under which the share of Central and State Governments are 50;50. Under this, financial aid is given to the members of SC/ST community through a revolving fund scheme.
      • Moreover, under this Act, an amount of Rs. 60,000 is given to the families who have faced atrocities.
    • Scheme for Providing Foodgrains to Students Living in Residential Schools : Approval has been given to provide 15 kgs. (9 kgs. rice and 6 kgs. wheat) every month to students living in SC/ST hostels.
    • Mukhyamantri Anusuchit Jati Evam Anusuchit Janjati Chatrawas Anudan Yojana : This is a scheme of State Govt, under which, SC & ST students who reside in state govt hostels are provided cash incentive of Rs. 1000/- every month.
    • Pre-exam Training Centres : To train candidates of SC&ST community appearing in Union public Service Commission, Bihar Public Service Commission, Banking, Railways and other competitive examinations, 9 training centres are being run in state.
      • These coaching centres are being run in universities in Patna, Bhagalpur, Gaya, Ara, Chhapra, Muzaffarpur, Saharsa, Purnea and Darbhanga.
      • Apart from this, one Student Guidance Centre is operational at Chandragupta Institute of Management, Patna where training is given for GMAT/CAT examinations.
      • Presently, there is provision of 2460 candidates for the training for competitive examinations at different centres.
  • Mahadalit Welfare
    • Out of the 22 scheduled castes in Bihar, 21 are acutely deprived in terms of economic and social status.
      • This was because the population belonging to these scheduled castes has not benefited much from the welfare programmes meant for them.
      • This led to the constitution of the State Mahadalit Commission.
    • The idea of Bihar Mahadalit Vikas Mission is to fulfill the basic necessities of all Mahadalit communities through their economic, social and cultural empowerment and ensure their full participation in development.
      • The Mission has planned a number of schemes to attain this goal.
      • According to a May 2018 notification of the State Government , all SC and ST families will avail the facilities of schemes that are being implemented by Bihar Mahadalit Vikas Mission.
      • This Mission is registered under the Societies Registration Act 1860.
    • Vikas Mitras :
      • The Vikas Mitras have been appointed for proper implementation of programmes in panchayats and wards. To promote empowerment of women, 50 percent of the posts are reserved for women.
      • Presently, mole than 9000 Vikas Mitras are working in the state and they are selected from the Mahadalit community itself.
    • Dashrath Manjhi Kaushal Vikas Yojana:
      • The scheme has been stalled with an objective to improve the employability of the members of Mahadalit Community through Skill development training for different trades. The scheme is being executed by the Department of Labour Resources.
      • Till date, out of 10 batches which were to be trained in Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Institute (Kolkata), 7 have completed their training. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the training of 3 batches have been delayed.
    • Vikas Register:
      • The Vikas Register is maintained by Vikas Mitras to keep a record of the Mahadalit families which have already received the benefit of the welfare schemes of the State Government.
      • Till date, a database of 36.16 lakh families have been prepared by Vikas Mitras.
    • Community Hall-cum-Workshed Scheme: The scheme had started from 2010-11. Till date, under Community Hall-cum-Workshed scheme, 3961 units have been constructed in different districts of the state.
    • Sahayata (Call Centre) : The centre, established as per SC and ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 and Rule 1995, registers the complaints related to atrocities against SC/ST and acts as tele help centre.
    • Under the Scheme of Mukhyamantri Anusuchit Jati & Anusuchit Janjati Post-Matric Scholarship Yojana, all students of Bihar belonging to SC&ST community whose parents’ annual income is between Rs. 2.50 lakh and Rs. 3.00 lakh can avail scholarship for post matric studies in any institute within the state or outside the state.
      • This fully state sponsored scheme is implemented with an objective to increase the Gross Enrolment Ratio of SC&ST students by providing financial assistance at post-matriculation stage.
      • Approval has been given for construction of 520-seat higher secondary-level girls residential school for BC and EBC in all districts of Bihar.
  • Welfare of Backward and Extremely Backward Classes
    • The Department of Welfare of Backward and Extremely Backward Classes was constituted in 2007-08 by the State Government for comprehensive development of these communities.
      • The backward classes are those castes/communities that are notified as such by the State Government.
      • In Bihar, almost 60 percent of its population account for 131 backward castes.
    • At present, the State Government implements a number of welfare programmes for the BCs and OBCs, particularly addressing their educational needs.
      • Pre-Matric Scholarship Scheme:
        • Under this Centrally Sponsored Scheme for OBC Pre-matric Scholarship, the earlier income ceiling of 1.50 lakh per annum has now been raised to Rs. 2.50 annum in 2020-21.
        • In 2021-22, a budget provision of 1011.52 crore has been made.
      • Chief Minister BC and EBC Post-matric Scholarship Scheme:
        • Under this Centrally Sponsored Scheme, only those OBC students are eligible for scholarship whose annual family income lies between Rs. 2.5 lakh and Rs. 3.00 lakh.
        • This scheme was started in 2019-20 to enhance the social and educational status of the OBC students. In 2021-22, a budget provision of Rs. 375.06 crore has made for the scheme.
    • Chief Minister Backward Classes Merit Scholarship Scheme:
      • Under this scheme, an amount of Rs. 10,000 is given only to the boy students belonging to Backward Class, whose annual family income is less than Rs. 1.50 lakh and who have passed matriculation examination with first division, conducted by Bihar School Examination Board.
      • The scheme was started from 2015-16. The scholarships for girls of Backward Classes are given by the Department of Education since 2017-18.
    • Chief Minister Extremely Backward Classes Civil Services Encouragement Scheme:
      • Under this scheme, Rs. 1.00 lakh is given to the EBC students for qualifying Preliminary Test in UPSC and Rs. 50,000 is given to EBC students for qualifying Preliminary Test in BPSC.
      • In 2020-21 , 394 aspirants have been benefited by the scheme, and in 2021-22, 892 aspirants have availed the benefit till date.
    • Jannayak Karpoori Thakur Hostel Scheme:
      • The scheme was started for BC and EBC students in 2008-09. Presently, such hostels have constructed in 28 districts, out of which 27 are already functional.
      • In 2019-20, approval has been given for construction of hostel boundary in 3 more districts (Supaul, Darbhanga and Samastipur).
      • Currently, a proposal ror construction of a total 10 OBC welfare hostels in eight districts (Gopalganj, Buxar, Nawada, Saharsa, Purnea, Araria, Nalanda and Anval) has been sent to the Central Government.
    • Setting up of Directorate and Regional Offices:
      • For the efficient implementation of various welfare schemes for BC and OBC, funds for establishment of a Directorate at the Headquarters and regional offices at Divisional, District and Sub Divisional levels have been sanctioned in 2021- 22.
    • Foodgrains Supply Yojana:
      • Under this scheme, the hostels run for BC and EBC welfare have the provision of getting 15 kgs. foodgrains (9 kgs. rice and 6 kgs. wheat) per student per month, for the students residing there. The scheme had started in 2016-17.
  • Minority Welfare:
    • As a secular state, the State Government has always tried to ensure progress for all sections of the population, including the minorities.
    • According to 2011 census, the religious minorities constitute 17.3 percent of the population of Bihar, with
      • 16.9 percent Muslims and
      • 0.4 belonging to other religions.
    • Muslims constitute a large part of the population in Kishanganj (68.0 percent), Katihar (44.5 percent), Araria (42.9 percent) and Purnea (38.5 percent).
    • An important objective of the State Government is socio-economic and educational development of minorities in the state. Thus, to initiate the welfare of these communities, the Department of Minority Welfare was set up in Bihar in 1991.
    • Thereafter, the Department has started various schemes for better livelihood, educational upliftment and enhancement of employment opportunities for the minorities.
  • Mukhyamantri Vidyarthi Protsahan Yojana:
    • Under this scheme, Rs. 10,000 is given to minority students who have passed matric with first division, and Rs. 15,000 to Muslim girls who have passed intermediate with first division, as an incentive for continuing their education.
    • For those minority students who have kept Bengali language as an optional subject in matric and have also obtained first division in the subject, an incentive amount of Rs. 10,000 has been provisioned.
    • From 2017-18, the Madarsa students passing Fauqania and Maulvi examination with first division from Bihar State Madarsa Education Board are also being covered under this scheme.
    • Upto 2020-21, 6.36 lakh minority students got the benefit of this scheme. In 2021-22, a total of 79,521 students will get the incentive amount.
  • Muslim Divorcee/Deserted Women Assistance Programme:
    • The scheme was started in 2006-07 to provide financial assistance to Muslim women who are either divorced or deserted. Since 2018-19, the beneficiaries have been availing the facility of e-welfare portal.
    • Under this scheme, a total of 12,875 Muslim divorcee/deserted women were benefited in 2019-20. In 2020-21, Rs. 109 lakh has been distributed among 436 needy women.
  • Minority Hostel Yojana (Alpsankhyak Chhatrawas Yojana):
    • To encourage basic as well as vocational education among minority students, there is a provision of providing hostel facility in all district headquarters of the state.
    • Till date, 45 hostels have already been constructed and 7 more are under construction. About 4535 students can reside in such hostels.
  • Mukhyamantri Alpsankhyak Kalyan Chhatrawas Anudan/Khadyann Yojana:
    • The scheme was started in 2018-19 to promote higher education among the minority students. Under this scheme, students residing in minority hostels are given a grant of Rs. 1000 and 15 kgs. foodgrains per month.
    • In 2021-22, an amount of Rs. 15.07 lakh has been earmarked for 1507 minority students, under Chhatrawas Anudan Yojana.
  • Mukhyamantri Alpsankhyak Rojgar Rin Yojana:
    • The programme is being implemented since 2012-13. In 2017-18, to enable the minority youth become self-employed, instead of a loan of Rs. 25 crore per year, the amount has been increased to Rs. 100 crore for five years.
    • Upto 2020-21, an amount of Rs. 225.53 crore was distributed among 15,799 beneficiaries.
  • Rajya Coaching Yojana :
    • To increase the representation of minority students in state administration and other technical and management jobs, a provision of free coaching has made since 2006-07. In 2020-21, 1386 minority youths got coaching for different competitive examinations, of which 51 students qualified in BPSC examination and 53 in the selection of sub-inspectors.
  • Bihar Rajya Waqf Vikas Yojana :
    • For development of property registered under Sunni and Shia Waqf Board, construction and maintenance work is undertaken for multipurpose buildings, guest house, marriage hall, Waqf office building, market complex, etc.
    • Upto 2020-21, a sum of Rs. 104.75 crore was approved for different schemes, of which Rs. 59.91 crore has already been released.
Women Empowerment
  • Comprehensive development cannot be attained unless women are benefited equally from the development programmes. Empowerment of women is a process that leads them to claim their rights in economic, cultural, social and political spheres of life and realise their full potential.
  • This advancement has to be accompanied by freedom in choice and the ability to influence the direction of social change. It was during the Eighth Plan (1992-97) when empowerment of women was recognised and accepted as a distinct strategy for the first time.
  • This was further taken forward during the Ninth Plan (1997-2002), with the introduction of the concept of Women’s Component Plan, whereby identified ministries were required to indicate the flow of funds to the women’s programmes.
    • Later, the Twelfth Plan (2012-17) identified the key indicators for gender equity to be addressed in the planning process through economic, social and cultural empowerment.
  • Since gender equality and women’s empowerment are an important agenda, the State Government has been publishing its gender budget since 2013-14.
    • Also, in 2015, the Gender Resource Centre, a cell of Women Development Corporation (WDC), was designated as a nodal agency for Gender Budgeting.
    • An overview of the gender budget for seven years (2013-14 to 2019-20) is presented in Table 11.32. From the table, it emerges that
    • The total expenditure on women has increased by 4.5 times between 2013-14 and 2019-20. In the same period, the expenditure under Category I increased 4.7 times and under Category II increased 4.3 times.
    • The share of the expenditure on women in the total state budget was 16.0 percent in 2020-21. Also, the total outlays for women as percent of GSDP was 3.7 percent in 2020-21.
  • The foremost objective of Gender Budgeting is to encourage all departments in the State Government to become more gender-aware and scrutinise their budgets from a gender perspective.
    • It would gradually lead to an increase in the budgetary priority for programmes designed specifically for women, and efforts towards making public expenditure more responsive to gender concerns.
    • Towards preparing Gender Budgets, schemes which are entirely meant for women are classified under Category I (100 percent women-specific programme).
    • For other programmes, it is assumed that at least 30 percent of the expenditure will benefit women, and they are classified under Category II.
    • There has been increase in expenditure for both Category I and Category- II schemes in 2019-20, compared to 2018-19.
    • Also Social Welfare, Education, Rural Development and Health are the four principal departments, through which women-oriented programmes are implemented.
  • The interventions by the State Government to address gender disparity can be clubbed under two main heads:
    • (a) child protection (Mukhyamantri Kanya Utthan Yojana to promote the birth of girl child and stop female foeticide)
      • The objective of the Mukhyamantri Kanya Utthaan Yojna is to promote birth of girl child, birth registrations and to prevent foeticide and gender imbalance.
      • The scheme was launched in 2018. Under this scheme, at the time of birth of a girl, a sum of Rs. 2000 is transferred to the account of mother/father/guardian and after completion of one year and Aadhar registration, an additional sum of Rs. 1000 is again transferred to the same bank account.
    • (b) social and economic security (Lakshmibai Social Security Pension scheme, Kanya Vivah Yojana and Nari Shakti Yojana).
      • The purpose of Mukhyamantri Kanya Vivah Yojana is to help those family whose income is less than Rs. 60,000 thousand per month, on the occasion of their girl’s marriage.
      • This programme also promotes the girl’s education, registration of marriage and restricts child marriage. A sum of Rs. 5000 is given to the girl child through Direct Benefit Transfer into her bank account.
      • Similarly, the other two schemes also address social and economic concerns through financial protection and moral support.
      • In 2019-20, out of the four flagship schemes, the maximum expenditure (74.3 percent) was made under Lakshmibai Social Security Pension Scheme. In totality, the expenditure on flagship schemes have gradually increased between 2016-17 and 2020-21 by 58.2 percent.
  • The empowerment of women can be assessed by three criteria — economic, social, and cultural. Each component has its own significance and three of them together cause empowerment of women.
  • Economic Empowerment:
    • Micro-Insurance (Ensure to Insure) :
      • Insurance is an effective tool to mitigate risks arising due to sudden and unforseen incidents.
      • The project provides insurance services to SHG members registered under Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana (PMJJBY) and Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana (PMSBY).
      • Expanding the range of financial products for the community beyond savings and credit, JEEViKA facilitated the linkage of more than 11 lakh SHG members to low-cost insurance coverage.
      • Insurance service that was provided to SHG members under PMJJBY and PMSBY was discontinued in June 2020 and there was no enrolment in 2020-21. However, in 2021-22, JEEViKA started providing insurance coverage to SHG members directly through banks.
    • Alternative Banking — ‘Bank Hamare Gaon’:
      • In recent years, Customer Service Points have emerged as one of the successful alternatives of banking. The Banking Correspondents (Bank Sakhis) facilitate easy banking services for rural women, specially those in remote rural areas.
      • To facilitate these services, JEEViKA has made collaborations with several partners, viz., C-DOT, Synapse Solutions Pvt. Ltd., Sanjivani, Common Service Centers, Manipal and Vedavaag Systems Limited, which are associated with major Banks like PNB, CBI, SBI, IDFC, BOI, ICICI, Canara Bank, UBI, etc.
    • Financial Inclusion:
      • The programme for financial inclusion adopted the approach of SHG-based financial access, where local bank branches could reach a large client base by serving a much smaller set of community institutions.
        • At the village level, 12—15 rural women come together to form a Self-Help Group (SHG). These groups are oriented to meet regularly and undertake financial savings and lend internally from the group’s savings or corpus.
        • The programme provides catalytic funding in the form of a Community Investment Fund (CIF), initially to stimulate financial intermediation and build the credit history of members.
        • This provides base for larger financial envelope to empower SHGs to seek credit from commercial banks when they mature. With a proven credit history and a small corpus generated by way of savings and interest, the SHGs become enabled to leverage larger credit amounts from banks.
        • Saving accounts of 9.5 lakh SHGs have been opened in different banks. These SHGs have multiple times leveraged from the banks.
        • Till September 2021, altogether 12.7 lakh credit linkages of SHGs with banks have been done and amount worth Rs. 16,537 crore has been provided as credit linkage amount from different banks.
    • Farm Value Chain:
      • The value chain interventions provide clear opportunities for commodity- specific clusters, identified on the basis of value chain analysis, done either by technical agencies or by the district teams.
      • In the farm value chain intervention, the forward linkage is supported by post-harvest and market access for realizing higher farm price produce through Producer Groups and Women Farmer Producer Companies.
        • One of the widely lauded initiatives was the Maize Value Chain intervention in Purnea district.
    • Dairy Producer Company:
      • With the technical support from National Dairy Development Board (NDDB), JEEViKA has established Kaushikee Mahila Milk Producer Company Limited in Saharsa in September 2017. The company is providing dairy services to community members of Saharsa, Supaul and Madhepura districts.
      • The Producer Company has shown progressive growth in terms of membership, procurement, and village coverage. In 2021, the average milk procured is 3 1.4 thousand liters per day.
    • Sashakt Mahila, Saksham Mahila: The Saat Nishchay-ll of the State Government specifically aims at women empowerment through three schemes :
      • Special Scheme for Female Entrepreneurship : To enhance female entrepreneurship in the state, a special scheme has been planned. Under this scheme, for the industries planned by females, 50 percent of the project cost is borne by the State Government.
        • Additionally, a maximum grant of up to Rs. 5.00 lakh and interest-free loan (maximum up to Rs. 5.00 lakh), is also given to the female entrepreneurs.
      • Encouragement of Girls for Higher Education : To promote higher education among girls, an amount of Rs. 25,000 is given to unmarried girls on completion of intermediate and Rs. 50,000 on completion of graduation.
      • Participation of Women in Regional Administration as per Reservation : The participation of women in regional administration, police, block, sub-division and district-level offices is planned to be increased according to a reservation plan.
    • Aarakshit Rojgar Mahilaon ka Adhikaar :
      • In order to empower women through work participation, the State Government has provided 35 percent reservation to women in all government jobs.
      • Further, a reservation of 50 percent for women is also provided for elected representatives in the Panchayati Raj Institutions and Municipal bodies.
      • Apart from this, the State Government has also established Women Police Stations and has reserved 35 percent posts in the Bihar Police Service for women. The Women Self-Help Groups, formed under JEEViKA, have also enhanced women’s confidence.
      • Presently, a total of 4149 women have been appointed against 30,225 notified posts in various departments. In the police department, a total of 4562 women have been recruited against 18,573 notified posts.
    • Women Development Corporation (WDC):
      • A range of activities are conducted at the state and district level to strengthen the economic and social status of women in the state.
      • In 2020-21 , against the budget of Rs. 3.25 crore, an amount of Rs 3.71 crore was spent.
  • Social Empowerment
    • Food Security and Health Risk Fund:
      • To address the key human development issues, including health security and household sanitation, JEEViKA has taken several initiatives.
      • To address the issue of availability during lean seasons, the project introduced the concept of the Food Security Fund (FSF) at the village organisation (VO) levels.
      • The Health Risk Fund (HRF) is another specialized financial product at the VO level to finance the health-related credit needs.
      • JEEViKA has implemented HRF intervention in 51,089 VOS that helped in mitigating health shocks for the poorest sections of society.
    • Behaviour Change Communication (BCC):
      • A comprehensive BCC intervention was implemented, which was aimed at impacting prevalent household practices regarding health, nutrition and sanitation. The model has been considered highly effective and cost-efficient and scaled up under Bihar Transformative Development Project.
      • Training of SHG members on BCC module started with the objective to create awareness and promote adoption of right practices in health, nutrition and sanitation.
      • Community Mobilizers are being trained in different modules of BCC.
    • Short Stay Home :
      • In order to provide protection to women who are victims of violence, it has been decided by the State Government to run an orphanage in all the districts of the state.
      • In order to rehabilitate the socially and economically oppressed women, as per the provisions contained in the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act 2005 and the Prevention of Immoral Trafficking Act 1986, Short Stay Homes are planned in all the districts of Bihar. Each orphanage has a facility for 25 women.
      • Various types of training and entrepreneurship development programmes are arranged for the oppressed women to build their capacities.
      • Presently, out of the 38 sanctioned Short Stay Homes, 12 are operational. It is being operated through the Women Development Corporation. Moreover, out of 17,601 total registered cases, 17,397 women have been rehabilitated and 204 cases are still pending.
  • Mukhyamantri Nari Shakti Yojana:
    • The Mukhyamantri Nari Shakti Yojana is a comprehensive scheme for social, economic and cultural empowerment of women. Under the scheme, free socio- psychological support and legal aid are provided to the victims of domestic violence, trafficked women, and adolescents.
    • There are also special development schemes for children and women affected by violence, like setting up of women’s helpline, protection homes, Short Stay homes, Palnaghar, formation of Self-Help Groups, promoting inter-caste marriages, nutrition and capacity building in a variety of fields.
    • Establishment of a Raksha Griha in the State is a component of the social empowerment under Mukhyamantri Nari Shakti Yolana, which aims at rehabilitating oppressed women and adolescent girls under the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act 2005.
      • In these protection homes, women are made self-sufficient through training to become empowered and able to earn their livelihood.
  • Social Awareness:
    • It has been observed that women are generally ignorant of their rights. The root cause of this is illiteracy. Many Acts have been passed for welfare of women in the state, but they are not aware about those. As a result, they have to endure various forms of oppression in their family and society.
    • Some of the major Acts for women are —
      • (i) Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act 2005,
      • (ii) Dowry Abolition Act 1961,
      • (iii) Prevention of Witch Practices Act 1999,
      • (iv) Girls Education Act,
      • (v) The Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act 2013, and
      • (vi) Gender Selection Prohibition Act 1994.
    • To overcome this challenge, awareness could be created through a workshop or street play on dowry harassment, human trafficking, child marriage, sexual harassment at the workplace, foeticide, etc.
    • Based on the objectives of women’ s rights, two types of schemes are approved under the Mukhyamantri Nari Shakti Yojana.
      • One is family school, through which couples are to be given training and counselling on family cohesion, education, health and any other identified issues.
      • Another is awareness campaign, which is conducted through cultural programmes aimed at demonstrating practical knowledge of law.
        • In this, the provisions contained in the Acts are to be disseminated through dramas, street plays, documentary films and awareness campaigns through NGOs.
        • Publicity will also be done in the state through posters, banners, hoardings, etc.
  • One Stop Centre-cum-HeIp Line:
    • Along with the objective of providing psychological counselling and legal aid to the suffering women at the One Stop Centre, the helpline has also been approved in all the 38 districts of the state.
    • Many women who face violent crimes do not know where to go for support. For them, One Stop Centres have been set up across the state. Popularly known as Sakhi Centres, the scheme of One Stop Centre is being implemented across the state since April, 2015.
    • These centres facilitate access to an integrated range of services, including police, medical, legal, psychological and temporary shelter to women affected by violence.
    • The scheme is funded through Nirbhaya Fund. It is a physical helpline in which any distressed woman can appear on her own or through a service provider, or with a person and submit her application and receive counselling services.
    • The domestic violence incident report is communicated to the first-class magistrate by the Helpline as per requirement. The project manager of the Helpline has been notified by the State Government as the Protection officer under the of Women from Domestic Violence Act 2005.
    • During 2020-21, total 5680 cases were registered and 4469 (i.e. around 79 percent cases) were disposed under the Social Empowerment component of One Stop Center. Out of all cases in 2020-21, registration is the highest for domestic violence, followed by dowry abuse.
  • Cultural Empowerment
    • Didi ki Rasoi: Didi ki Rasoi’ has been one of the most aspirational initiatives of JEEViKA, in which a community-managed canteen of the SHG members were initially started in Sadar Hospitals in 4 districts (Buxar, Sheikhpura, Purnea and Vaishali). Satisfied by the success of Didi- Ki-Rasoi canteens run by SHG members, the State Government has decided to hand over all the canteens of government hospitals to JEEViKA didis.
    • In this regard, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed between JEEViKA and State Health Society on February 21, 2021.
    • Till September 2021, a total of 42 units of Didi-Ki-Rasoi have been established, engaging around 400 SHG members.
  • Art and Craft :
    • To promote cultural empowerment, paper-lamps, files, folders, laptop bags, sarees, etc., with art forms like Madhubani painting, Sujni, and Stone Art, are some of the niche products that are promoted by JEEViKA.
    • By September 2020-21, a total of 5196 households have organised into Producer’s Groups. A Producer Company ‘Shilpgram Mahila Producer Company Limited‘ was established in October 2018.
    • The products are being sold either offline (Fairs, Khadi mall, Wellness mall, B2B, B2C) or online via portals (shop.brlps.in, GeM, Amazon, Flipkart, etc.). All ranges of products from non-farms were sold to different buyers, which reported an income of around Rs. 5.74 crore.
  • Meena Manch :
    • It is a group of 20 girls, which includes 15 girls from upper primary schools and 5 dropout girls who have completed at least Class V education.
    • The Manch is responsible for age- appropriate admission of girls and boys in the school, ensuring regular attendance of students, and boosting up the students for completing their elementary education. Further, they are also sensitised for taking decision regarding their upliftment, development, etc.
    • A Meena Prerak is selected from among the Manch girls. A woman teacher in each model cluster school is being selected as Meena Sugamkarta for organising the activities of the Manch.
Social Security for Old and Disabled
  • Social security is the protection which society provides to its members through a series of public measures to prevent social and economic distress that would otherwise be caused by the stoppage or substantial reduction in earnings resulting from sickness, invalidity or old age.
  • The Right to life, recognised as a fundamental right by Article 21 of the Constitution, implies the right to live with human dignity. It encompasses not only the security regarding the basic human needs of food, cloth and shelter, it also includes health security.
  • Social security schemes usually give priority to income security, because, generally, the basic needs of the vulnerable sections may be satisfied if people have an adequate income.
  • Most of the elderly people become vulnerable due to their inability to work and earn. Vulnerability due to advancing age can be anticipated in time, and can be mitigated by making specific provisions if one has an adequate income.
  • According to Census 2011, the population of senior citizens (people aged 60 and above) in Bihar (77.07 lakh) accounts for 7.4 percent of its total population.
    • Further, the share of the disabled in the total population of Bihar (23.31 lakh) is 2.2 percent.
  • These two population groups demand considerable attention of the State Government. So, to provide security and economic independence to these two segments of society, the State Government, in association with the Central Government, is promoting several social security schemes for persons of old age, widows, and the disabled.
  • Mukhyamantri Vridhjan Pension Scheme:
    • This universal pension scheme for senior citizens, named ‘Mukhyamantri Vridhjan Pension Scheme’, was started in April, 2019. Under the scheme, a senior citizen (60 years and above), who has not availed any other social security pension scheme or any government pension scheme, is benefited.
    • The amount of pension is Rs. 400 per month for 60-79 years age-group and Rs. 500 month for the age group 80 years and above. Till date, 30.53 lakh senior citizens have been by the scheme.
  • National Action Plan for Senior Citizen (NAPSC):
    • The scheme aims at the welfare of senior citizens of the country. This is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme, which takes care of the four most important needs of senior citizens financial security, food, health care, and human interaction / life of dignity.
    • It also includes the details of safety, protection and general wellbeing of the elderly, beginning from awareness generation and sensitization of society. Presently, the scheme is being implemented for five years (2019-2025).
  • National Action Plan for Drug Demand Reduction (NAPDDR):
    • The aim of the plan is to reduce the adverse consequences of drug abuse through a mufti-pronged strategy. The scheme is being implemented by the Union Ministry of Social Justice and for a of eight years (2018-25).
    • The activities under the NAPDDR inter-alia, include awareness generation programmes in schools/ colleges / universities, workshops / seminars with parents, community- based peer-led interactions, intervention programmes for vulnerable adolescents and youths in the community, provisioning of treatment facilities, and capacity building of service providers.
    • The Ministry has also initiated focused intervention programmes in vulnerable districts across the country. This is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme.
  • Mukhyamantri Family Benefit Scheme:
    • This scheme was started in 2012-13. Under this scheme, a one-time grant of Rs. 20,000 is given to a family in case of a death in the family due to either an accident or a criminal incident.
    • An amount of Rs. 2.00 crore has been spent in 2020-21 under this scheme.
  • Kabir Antyeshti Anudan Yojana:
    • Under this scheme, a one-time grant of Rs. 3000 is given to BPL families to perform last rites (funeral rituals) in case of a death in their family. Now, e-suvidha is used to make direct payment to the beneficiaries.
    • Also, a one-time advance of Rs. 15,000 to each panchayat for 5 beneficiaries, Rs. 30,000 for 10 beneficiaries in Nagar panchayat, Rs. 60,000 for 20 beneficiaries in Nagar Parishad, and Rs. 90,000 for 30 beneficiaries in Municipal Corporation is being provided.
  • Mukhyamantri Bhikshavritti Nivaran Yojana:
    • This scheme guards the rights of beggars by ensuring their care, protection, and development through enabling policies.
    • In 12 districts of the state (Patna, Gaya, Nalanda, Rohtas, Muzaffarpur, Darbhanga, Bhagalpur, Katihar, Saran, Araria, Vaishali and Purnea), a total of 10,403 beggars have been identified by the State Govemment.
    • They have been provided with an identity proof so that they can get the benefit of different welfare programmes of the State Government.

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