The Himachal Pradesh government will remove the caste column from school admission forms from the next academic session, Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu announced on Wednesday.
Sukhu said the move was aimed at reducing caste-based discrimination among children and promoting equality and fraternity in schools.
Caste Details Still Required for Government Benefits
Chairing a meeting of the Himachal Pradesh Scheduled Caste Welfare Board (HPSCWB) in Shimla, Sukhu said removing the caste column would help prevent children from developing a sense of inferiority based on their caste.
He said the state government was committed to creating a society based on equality and eliminating discrimination on the basis of caste.
However, Scheduled Caste members will still be required to provide their caste details while applying for government schemes and welfare benefits. This, the chief minister said, would ensure that eligible beneficiaries continue to receive the benefits available to them.
Sukhu said the government was giving priority to addressing issues faced by the Scheduled Caste community and urged officials to ensure that eligible people were made aware of welfare schemes.
Loans for Higher Education
The chief minister also highlighted measures aimed at helping students pursue higher education.
Under the state government’s scheme, meritorious students can receive loans of up to Rs 20 lakh at an interest rate of one per cent. Sukhu said the initiative was intended to ensure that students do not have to discontinue their education because of financial difficulties.
He also said the government would implement the Apna Parivar Sukhi Parivar Yojana for extremely poor families.
Under the scheme, eligible families will receive 300 units of free electricity, while women from these families will be provided a monthly pension of Rs 1,500.
Subsidy for Solar Projects
Sukhu said the government was also providing financial support under the Rajiv Gandhi Start-up Swarozgar Saur Yojana for setting up solar power projects ranging from 100 KW to 2 MW.
The government is providing a 5 per cent subsidy for projects in tribal areas and a 4 per cent subsidy in other areas, he said.
Rs 1,400 Crore for Social Security Pensions
Social Justice and Empowerment Minister Dr Dhani Ram Shandil said the state currently provides social security pensions to 8,41,917 beneficiaries.
He said old-age men receive Rs 1,000 per month, while women, persons with disabilities, widows and deserted or single women receive Rs 1,500 per month.
Senior citizens above 70 years of age and people with more than 70 per cent disability receive Rs 1,700 per month.
Around Rs 1,400 crore is being spent on social security pension schemes during the current financial year, Shandil said.
The department is also spending around Rs 314.90 crore on schemes aimed at the social and economic upliftment of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Other Backward Classes, women, children and senior citizens. An additional Rs 1,105.37 crore has been allocated under the Scheduled Caste Development Programme.
