An Evaluation Study Report on the Individual Beneficial Scheme in the District of Nagaon

Abstract

Scheduled Castes are one of the most socially disadvantaged groups in India which needs special focus over the years for their social and economic advancement. Government has taken several steps for framing appropriate policies needed to design and implement various welfare programmes for achieving the objective of creating favourable environment to ensure speedy socio economic development of the SCs. For the well being of the SC communities, Assam State Development Corporation initiate special target-oriented programmes by earmarking funds and providing subsidies. The Assam State Development Corporation for SC Ltd. was established in the year 1975 with an objective to accelerate the pace of economic development of scheduled castes people of the state under the Department of Welfare of Plain Tribes and Backward Classes, Govt. of Assam. For economic upliftment of the downtrodden scheduled castes people of the state, the corporation has been implementing various individual beneficiary schemes such as Margin Money scheme introduced in 1979 and Direct Loan scheme introduced in 1981 as per guidelines of the Department of Welfare Govt of India. To know the status and further scope of improvement the ASDC proposed TRI, Assam to conduct an evaluation study on implementation of the scheme. One of the main objectives of this evaluation study was to examine critically whether the schemes were prepared keeping in view of the actual needs and requirements of the benefitted. This study was conducted in the 1987 in Nagaon and Morigaon district, where percentage of SC is higher than any other district of Assam. The report highlights the problems the families have to face to get the benefits of the scheme after approved by the Corporation. The report identifies 58 families from the Margin Money scheme and 124 families from the Direct Loan Scheme to get the necessary inputs related to the implementation of the scheme. The report also contains a set of suggestion and recommendation for more effective and fruitful implementation of the scheme in future.