Sir, a world-class station was proposed, and all decisions were taken and tabled on the floor of the House in the Budget Speech when Mamata Banerjee was the Railway Minister. अब आप मझुेबोलनेदीदजए, तपीकर साहब नेमझुे
बोलनेके दलए कहा है। Secondly, I have the right to know what a world-class train means. उन्होंने कहा दक हम लोग बलुेट ट्रेन की तरह ट्रेन्स िलाएगां े।
Sir, medical insurance has become necessary and a must have protection for all the people in India mainly because
of the high cost of treatment. However, imposition of 18 per cent GST makes it very expensive and puts the burden on the already small income group. Providing affordable quality medical care to the citizens is the fundamental duty of the Government but it is failing in providing so. On top of that, imposition of such a high GST on insurance premium is creating a dual burden on people which is literally leaving the people in a difficult position. For a premium of Rs. 15,000, the final premiumwith GST amounts to around Rs. 18,000. This is even higher by 10 per cent and goes up to 25 per cent if the insurer has a pre-existing disease. Just imagine the pressure on the pocket. I request the Government and the hon. Finance Minister to remove the burden of GST on medical insurance or, at least, bring it down to the lowest slab, i.e. 5 per cent.
सभापति महोदय, मैंआपके माध्यम सेसदन मेंअपनेसंसदीय क्षेत्र की बाि उठाना चाहिी ह ं। आरामबाग लोक सभा क्षत्रे मेंहमेशा बाढ़ आिी है। वषण2021 मेंएक साल मेंिीन बारबाढ़ आ चकुीह।ैमैंआपके माध्यम सेप्रधान मंत्री जी सेयह दरख्वास्ि करिीह ं तक प्रधानमंत्री आवास योजना मेंतपछड़ेक्षत्रे ों की नम्बसणबढ़ाई जाए और इसकी रातश को बढ़ाया जाए। हमारी यह भी मांग हैतक जसै ेहमेंकेन्द्रीय तवद्यालय के कुछ कूपन्स तदए जािेहैं, हर माननीय सदस् य को प्रधानमंत्री आवास योजना का कुछ कोटा तदया जाए, िातक हम लोग अपनेसंसदीय क्षेत्र के
तपछड़ेइलाकों मेंलोगों की मदद कर सकें। धन्यवाद।
Hon. Speaker, Sir, I would like to express my sincere thanks to you for giving me the opportunity to speak on the most prominent topic, that is, recruitment in the Railways. In the answer paper I have received, a list of the Railway vacancies is given, but the Centralised Employment Notice Number has not been given in it. Being a Member of the Standing Committee on Railways, I have discussed about it. The Chairperson of the Standing Committee on Railways and others also spoke about the vacant posts in the Railways. I want to get details regarding it. Mr. Speaker, Sir, through you, I want to ask a question to the Minister of Railways. Every notification mentions a number. As per Notification No. 1/2018, the total number of vacancies was 57,839. Sir, my second supplementary question is this. It has come to ournotice that IRCTC takes the tender for onboard catering service, which is further given to third-parties as tender by IRCTC. As a result, the quality of food served deteriorates. I personally have received a lot of complaints about this matter previously. Also, it has come to my notice that in trains, like Sealdah Rajdhani, Howrah Rajdhani, and other Rajdhani Express Train where more than thousand passengers travel daily, there is only one pantry car in the entire train due to which food hygiene and service gets affected badly. Mr. Honourable Speaker Sir, through you, I want to ask the question to the Railway Minister. In trains like these where we have more than thousand passengers, is there any plan of the Government to have two pantry cars for easy and smooth service?
सर, हम कुछ अच्छी चीज पूछना चाहतेहैं, कोई खराब चीज नहींहै। यह अच्छी बात हैलक उन्होंनेजो लकया, उसके ललए मैंबधाई देना चाहता ह ।ुँ सर, मैंयह बात रले लमलनस्टर सेपूछना नहीं चाहता ह , ुँबलर्लक उनको एक बात के ललए धन्यवाद देना चाहता ह ।ुँरले वेनेहम लोगों के सार् बहुत अच्छा लकया है। लजन लोगों केपास पेट रहता है, पैट का मतलब, लजन लोगों केपास कुत्ता रहता है, उनको िेन मेंलेजानेके ललए आपने लोगों की मागुँ कोपूरा कर लदयाहै। यह आप लोगों के ललए ररकॉ्डहै। यह काम पहलेकभी नहींहुआ र्ा।पहलेवेअपनापैट लेकर जा भी नहीं सकतेर्ेऔर आ भी नहीं सकतेर्े। लेलकन, अबवेआराम सेलेकर जातेहैं। सर, रले वेमेंस्पोट्डस्मैन की सबसेज्यादा नौकरी होती है, लजसमेंफुटबॉल, लिकेट, हॉकी तर्ा अन्य खेलों के भी लखलाड़ी हैं। मेहरबानी करकेआप उसको चालूकीलजए। बहुत सेस्पोट्डस्मैन
आपके सार् हैं। आप उनको र्ोड़ा अच्छा सेदेलखए।
Sir, I would like to ask this from the hon. Minister, whoever chooses to reply. You have mentioned that compensation cess will go on beyond five years. Now, we have been demanding this for a long time. We would like to know more specifically: For how many years?
Sir, my Special Mention is on ‘Need for Parliamentary scrutiny on the Policy regarding Mining in no-go areas.’ In 2010, a study was done by Forest Survey of India that laid down certain parameters to determine whether areas should be opened to mining or not. Some areas were recognized as ‘No-go areas’ and any clearances granted to them were revoked. This policy was never notified officially but was followed de facto. However, the policy was eventually diluted and then abandoned entirely The current situation is that there is a lack of policy to determine which of the earlier designated no-go areas may or may not be mined. Some areas are recommended for mining at the executive level through Office Memoranda. Ministries coordinate among themselves. However, the clearance process keeps getting delayed even after the coal blocks have been auctioned. This delay proves harmful to the forests because the mining companies that win the auction work to illegally reduce the forest density, or acquire forest land and designate it as private land. Due to the environmental clearances being regulated through Office Memoranda, parliamentary scrutiny is completely skipped. This should ideally happen through Acts or rules and the same should be laid before the Parliament. There is a need for the Central Government to provide a clear policy regarding mining in no-go areas. The policy should be brought as an Act or rules, and should be subjected to parliamentary scrutiny. Further, the Ministry should provide for a policy for allocation of projects in no-go areas and a procedure for clearance of the allocated blocks.
Sir, this is the voice of Darjeeling, Tarai Dooars and North Bengal. The Government of India order of 15th June, 1999, which was further amended on 25th June, 2002, has laid down the modalities. As per the modalities, only those proposals which have been recommended and justified by the concerned State Government, Union Territories administration and concurred with by Registrar General of India and National Commission for Scheduled Tribes are to be considered and legislation amended. In consequence, the State of West Bengal has recommended and justified it. Sir, I humbly urge the august House to seek a detailed explanation whether the recommendation by the West Bengal Government has been concurred with by Registrar General of India and National Commission for Scheduled Tribes and the reason for extreme delay in the interest of eleven Gorkha backward tribes. In what time frame the
legislation be amended? Thank you, Sir.
Sir, the hon. Minister in his reply has elaborately given the answer regarding the National Programme for Dairy Development. I would like to know from the hon. Minister about the issues relating to adulteration of milk and also regarding the appropriate quality standards of milk products before these products enter the market.
Sir, thank you for giving me this opportunity. There are 23.5 per cent Scheduled Castes and nearly 6 per cent Scheduled Tribes in my home State of West Bengal. According to 2011 Census reports, the STs literacy rate in India, in males it was 68 per cent and in females, it was 49 per cent respectively. The West Bengal STs literacy rate was 74 per cent and 43 per cent, respectively, for males and females. Under the able-leadership of our Chief Minister, Ms. Mamata Banerjee, we successfully run the SC/ST pension schemes namely, Joy Johar, Tapasili Bandhu, Joy Bangla, all these are there to take care of the elderly communities amongst the SCs and STs. We know that, actually, they are the most marginalized sections of the society and, especially, the tribals, they are very poor, marginalized, socially also, they are downtrodden. So, the Bengal Government has taken into account all these things. The Government, especially, looking into plight, at times, of elderly people of these marginalized sections and has provided a monthly pension of Rs. 1,000 to give them a cushion of comfortability, financially and also socially. So, their social security is also taken care of, and in this way, we have tried as much as we could do to stand beside these marginalized
communities. Further, we have also established various lending programmes to help grow entrepreneurship in these communities. However, matters at the national level require a serious inquiry. As per the 2011 Census, 8.6 per cent of the country’s total population is Scheduled Tribes. Of the total primary school students population, you will see that the dropout among the tribal students is maximum. That is most unfortunate. In the working population, if you see the representation, it is only 6 per cent of those employed in Government offices who come from this Scheduled Tribe section. Again, it is not pro-rata. In spite of the constitutional mandates and the safeguards that have been provided, we have failed to deliver on the promises and we have failed to accommodate our ST population as was mandated by the Constitution. These things need to be looked into seriously. According to the Ministry’s Gap Analysis Dashboard of villages where the ST population is greater than 25 per cent, you will be astonished to know that only 9 per cent of these villages have banks, only 24 per cent of these villages have a healthcare centre and even more alarming, only 50 per cent have tap water and drainage facilities. As recently as in February, 2022, there was a very alarming situation in a particular case of a tribal community in Jammu’s Doda district. We are spending so much on works in Jammu & Kashmir. We are thumping our own backs of what we have done in Kashmir and how we keep on lauding ourselves but what have we done? Whereas if you see the STs, they are larger in figures than the SCs there. They are nearly 10 per cent. In one particular case, we found that a tribal community in Jammu’s Doda district was compelled to spend their own savings in order to gain access to potable water in the village. There is no drinking water. They spend their own savings and get water. The people of ST community in Jammu, mainly the Bakkarwals and such people, are the most marginalized people in the whole country. So they had to spend their own savings to arrange water. Even in the overwhelmingly advertised vaccination drive, a majority of the bottom 50 districts in terms of vaccine coverage have sizable tribal population, that is, 72 per cent of this population is from rural, tribal majority districts. Sir, real work has happened in Bengal and some other States. In the spirit of federalism, we must take some of these ideas and implement them further for greater cause of the nation. This Government should shed its arrogance and take a leaf out of book of Ms. Mamata Banerjee, the Chief Minister of Bengal, who has done well, as I have said. In this year’s Budget, the Ministry had proposed an amount of Rs.13,208 crores in the Budgetary Estimates for 2022-23 under various Centrally-Sponsored Schemes and Central Sector Schemes, out of which the Ministry of Finance has provided only an amount of Rs.8,406 crores, that is, there is a 36 per cent slash. In the years 2020-21 and 2021-22, the Ministry of Tribal Affairs had an allocation of Rs.7,355 plus crores and Rs.7,084 crore respectively. However, the allocation was reduced to Rs.5,472 crores in 2020-21 and Rs.6,126 crores in 2021-22 at the Revised Estimate stage. What is most shocking is that the Ministry of Tribal Affairs could not even fully spend the Revised Estimate allocation in 2020-21 and have been able to utilize just Rs.4,070 crores in 2021-22 up to 15th February, 2022, which is most alarming. Under-utilization of funds is a serious problem and we need to look into this. The under-utilization of funds is also reflected in two Special Area Programmes administered by the Ministry. Only half of the total allocated Special Central Assistance to Tribal Sub-Scheme was utilized in 2020-21. For the year 2021-22, the allocated amount was Rs. 1,350 crores, of which just a paltry sum of only Rs.4 crore had been utilized till January. It is unimaginable. Why this massive shortfall? On top of this, in grants-in-aid, out of Rs.1,350 crores of grants-in-aid for 2021-22, only Rs.364 crores have been utilized so far. Again, it is very alarming. The Standing Committee on Social Justice and Empowerment too observed and I quote “The Ministry of Tribal Affairs should avoid rush of expenditure at the fag end of the financial year and make sincere efforts so that funds are timely spent and the targeted people get the benefits.” The Standing Committee on Social Justice and Empowerment in its 30th Report has pointed out the stagnation in the scholarship programmes offered to ST students. Under Pre-Matric Scholarship Scheme, the beneficiaries of the funds released in some of the States such as Arunachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Maharashtra, Meghalaya, Puducherry, Telangana and Uttar Pradesh are alarmingly shown as nil. Of course, I do not know and the Minister will clarify this. Sir, 750 national fellowships are provided to the ST students each year for pursuing higher studies. During the last five years, only 45 students have been awarded the National Overseas Scholarship. Even 20 scholarships are not being fully utilized. The Standing Committee also found that overseas scholarship of 55 tribal students lapsed in the last five years due to the irresponsible approach of the Government. Out of thesanctioned amount of Rs.5 crore for overseas scholarship, most unfortunately, only little over Rs.2 crore has been spent for the year 2021-22. The Committee noted that for most of these scholarships, the number of beneficiaries and funds allocated has not increased over the year. The recommendations that the Committee has put is, I quote: “The annual increase in tribal population should be taken into consideration at the time of budgetary allocation and it should also be ensured that the number of beneficiaries increase every year.” The Parliament must note with urgency that the National Commission on Scheduled Tribes is short staffed and that the Reports of the Commission since 2018 are still under process in the Ministry of Tribal Affairs and have not been presented to the Parliament till date. In light of all these facts and figures, I urge the House to unite for a sincere discussion focussed on the welfare of the Scheduled Tribes. I would like to end by saying, in this 75th Year of Independence, that any progress, that does not include all its citizens, is not a progress because at this point in time, in the global scenario, whenever we talk of anything, we talk of inclusiveness and especially, in the Indian context, if you really want to surge ahead, move ahead, if you are not taking on board all the marginalized sections, this progress will only be a limited progress and ultimately, this will not allow you to achieve the goals you are dreaming of by saying, ‘Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas and Sabka Vishwas’. Sir, this should not merely remain as a statement of the Government. It should reflect on the ground. It should be palpable. We should be able to feel it. The marginalized communities should be able to have the advantage of it and we should be more careful that at any future point in time, the history does not denote this as a mere jumla. Thank you, Sir.
