VIJAYAWADA: In a bid to enhance the quality of life of tribals in the State, the government has contemplated integrated infrastructure development programme (IIDP) with a five-point formula that focuses on transport facility, education, health, water and power supply in tribal habitations.
Chief Secretary Dinesh Kumar, in a teleconference with higher officials of the Tribal Welfare and Energy Departments on Sunday, said Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu was very particular about the enhancement of the living conditions of tribals. The government’s intention is to enhance living standards of tribals on par with those in urban and rural regions in the State and the five-point formula will help in that direction, he said. According to him, the Chief Minister wanted to ensure equal opportunities, hence emphasis is being laid on connectivity between tribal habitations and other parts of the State.
Principal Secretary RP Sisodia said out of the 8,006 tribal habitations under six Integrated Tribal Development Agencies (ITDA), 4,712 habitations were connected to nearby towns and cities by road till October 2017. “In October itself, 117.6 km length of road was laid in Srikakulam, 475.6 km in Vizianagaram, 349 km in Visakhapatnam, 27.5 km in West Godavari connecting tribal habitations,” he said.
The Chief Secretary emphasised the need for a mechanism in place to provide safe drinking water to tribal hamlets. The works taken up for drinking water facilities in 4,689 habitations should be completed at the earliest, the officials told. With regard to admissions in educational institutions in the 2017-18 fiscal, he said the target was 1,01,600 tribal students and of which 1,01,338 were facilitated admissions, which is 99.74 per cent. Target achieved in Gurukulam admissions was 89.39 per cent and Best Available Schemes (BAS) admissions were 100 per cent.
He said tribal schools are being retrofitted with energy conservation equipment like LED bulbs and solar panels to augment power supply. Officials said infant mortality rate among tribals has come down from 50 per one lakh live births in 2016-17 to 11 per one lakh births in 2017-18 (till date).
Stay in tribal colonies once in a week, officials told
The Chief Secretary asked the officials concerned to spend one night
in tribal habitations to study the ground reality so that the schemes meant for the tribals can be implemented in a much more effective manner. He wanted them to do it once in a week and said during the time they also have to review the progress of various development schemes being implemented in agency areas.