By : Satyaki Paul
In September 2020, the Jharkhand Government had initiated the Phoolo-Jhano Ashirwad Abhiyan for rehabilitating women selling unregulated liquor and counselling them to adopt an alternative business source. The state government had initiated a process to provide Rs. 10,000 rupees collateral free loan to start-up small business.
In the tribal belts of Jharkhand home-brewing of rice beers is quite known to all due to the dire conditions of its economy and every ebbing household income. The woman-folks of such poverty-stricken household often gets involved in selling hooch in the local market wherein they had to face taunts of unruly customers. Furthermore, to add to these situations’ lockdown induced by COVID19 exacerbated their plight of recurring losses.
To tackle such situations the Jharkhand Government initiated this scheme. The women are identified through a state-wise survey of Jharkhand State Livelihood Promotion Society (JSLPS) which functions under the Rural Development Department of Jharkhand Government. Through this survey around 15,456 individuals were identified who were under duress. The local NGOs and self-help groups aided in counselling such individuals to adopt alternative micro-enterprises such as: animal husbandry, sale of minor forest produce, sericulture or poultry with a Rs. 10,000 credit to enhance the output of the activity for the initial time being.
Thus, if we look close into the fabric of the formulated policy put forward by the Jharkhand Government there is a likeliness towards the already available Tribal Panchsheel Policy put forward by our first Prime Minister Shri Jawaharlal Nehru. The first objective of the policy wasnon-imposition wherein Tribal individuals should develop along the lines of their own genius, and the imposition of alien values should be avoided is closely knit with this scheme.
Even though, no Jharkhand Government reports or statements mention such influence. But I think this policy is in line with the ideals of the Tribal Panchsheel. In conclusion, we can say that such schemes are quite good and effective as seen from the examples of sustainable development scenarios from North-east India. Nonetheless, the huge north-eastern success is yet to be replicated in the mainland states of India. And, the COVID19 had already wreaked havoc amongst such destitute/marginalised masses. Thus, only concrete efforts can alleviate the poverty and bridge the gaps amongst rural and urban masses. The author works as a Ph.D. Research Scholar at the Department of Anthropology, University of Calcutta, and the co-author of the book Anthropology For All (2021).