J'khand Cong to draft plan for socio-economic development of SC community

Ranchi, Jun 9 (PTI) Senior Congress leader Radha Krishna Kishore on Monday said that the Jharkhand unit of the party would convene a state-level meeting on June 11 to formulate a roadmap for the socio-economic development of the Scheduled Caste (SC) community.

Kishore, also the Jharkhand finance minister, said that the alliance government in the state is committed to establishing an advisory council and a commission for the SC community soon.

"The Jharkhand Congress has convened a meeting with senior leaders and activists from the SC community to develop a strategy for the socio-economic development of the community in the state," Kishore said while addressing reporters.

He said that Jharkhand Congress in-charge K Raju, co-in-charge Dr Bela Prasad, AICC's SC department chairman Rajendra Pal Gautam and state president Keshav Mahto Kamlesh, among others, would participate in the meeting.

"The SC population in the state is approximately 50 lakh but their socio-economic conditions remain poor. Officially, the per capita income in Jharkhand is stated to be Rs 1.05 lakh annually. However, based on my observations, the per capita income of the poor and SC community is likely to be not more than Rs 60,000 annually," he said.

Kishore emphasised that a serious discussion on their development is the need of the hour.

He alleged that the previous BJP government in Jharkhand neglected the SC community by failing to implement an advisory council and a commission for them.

"The BJP established the advisory council and the commission but they remained defunct during their tenure. However, the INDIA bloc government in Jharkhand is addressing this issue seriously. In this budget, the government announced plans to establish an advisory council for the SC community, following the model of the Tribes Advisory Council," he said.

He added that the SC commission will also be made functional soon in the state. PTI SAN SAN ACD