Tribal Forest Dwellers Empowerment Scheme launched

The Government enacted a Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006. Under this act, the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional forest Dwellers have been given the right to hold the forest land for habitation or for self-cultivation or for carrying out any other traditional activity for their livelihood. Most of the Scheduled Tribes are poor and need financial support for productive utilization of land for their livelihood.

In order to provide concessional finance to the Forest Dwelling STs, the NSTFDC has formulated the new Tribal Forest Dwellers Empowerment Scheme. NSTFDC would generate awareness, provide training and assist in market linkage apart from providing financial assistance at concessional rate of interest of 6% p.a. to the beneficiaries. This assistance would be made available through 33 State Channelizing Agencies of NSTFDC and certain PSU Banks/ Regional Rural Banks having refinance agreements with NSTFDC.

The Radio Partnership MoU between NSTFDC and AIR will cover events organized by NSTFDC for socio economic empowerment of STs. The broadcast can be in 23 languages and 146dialects throughout the country. The coverage will be in the form of Radio Report with in-house/news reel programmes. As AIR is having foot print over the entire country and is covering more than 99% of population, this partnership will facilitate creation of larger awareness about programmes of NSTFDC throughout the country.