MoTA Workshop on DAPST Framework Focuses on Tribal Empowerment & Governance

The Ministry of Tribal Affairs (MoTA) organized a one-day national workshop on 16th September 2025 at the Dr. Ambedkar International Centre (DAIC), New Delhi, to deliberate on the Development Action Plan for Scheduled Tribes (DAPST). The workshop brought together senior officials, experts, and representatives from multiple ministries to align strategies for bridging persistent development gaps and ensuring outcome-oriented utilization of funds allocated for tribal welfare.

Setting the Context

Opening the discussion, the Deputy Director General (DDG), MoTA highlighted that despite increased allocations over the years, development gaps among Scheduled Tribes persist, necessitating stronger outcome monitoring and targeted interventions. The workshop was formally inaugurated by the Joint Secretary & Financial Adviser (JS&FA), MoTA, who underscored the need for a dialogue on outcome orientation of DAPST allocations. She also pointed out practical challenges faced by ministries in channelizing funds effectively.

Shri Ganesh DS, MoTA, emphasized the significance of the Adi Karmyogi Abhiyan, a flagship mission aimed at transforming tribal governance through bottom-up planning and leadership development.

The DAPST Framework Explained

Under the DAPST framework, 41 Ministries/Departments across diverse sectors—education, health, agriculture, irrigation, housing, electrification, skill development, employment generation, and infrastructure—are mandated to earmark a fixed percentage (ranging from 4.3% to 17.5%) of their total scheme budget for the development of Scheduled Tribes. These percentages are prescribed under NITI Aayog guidelines.

The workshop facilitated cluster-wise breakout sessions where participating ministries discussed their schemes in detail, focusing on:

• Expanding outreach of welfare programmes.

• Enhancing scope to cover a larger tribal population.

• Identifying bottlenecks in effective fund utilization.

• Designing interventions aligned with tribal needs.

Linking Development with Responsive Governance

The event was held in the backdrop of the Janjatiya Gaurav Varsh (15th November 2024 – 15th November 2025), during which MoTA launched the Adi Karmayogi Abhiyan. This initiative has been described as the world’s largest grassroots tribal leadership programme, envisioned under the guidance of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi.

The Abhiyan seeks to empower tribal communities through village visioning exercises that will estimate development gaps at the grassroots level. These Village Action Plans (VAPs) will then be mapped to relevant DAPST schemes, ensuring that allocations are utilized to directly address community-specific needs.

Importance of Outcome-Oriented Utilization

The Ministry emphasized that the real challenge lies not in allocation, but in effective utilization of DAPST funds. By adopting a result-driven and inclusive approach, the government seeks to guarantee that benefits reach the last mile in tribal villages. Ministries were urged to strengthen monitoring, adopt innovative implementation practices, and mainstream tribal perspectives in policy planning.

Towards Inclusive Growth

The workshop highlighted the critical need for:

• Efficient fund allocation and tracking mechanisms.

• Strengthening community participation in planning.

• Promoting inclusive governance models that integrate tribal voices.

• Encouraging inter-ministerial convergence for holistic outcomes.

Through this framework, MoTA reaffirmed its commitment to ensuring socio-economic upliftment, cultural preservation, and grassroots empowerment of tribal communities.

The DAPST workshop underlined the government’s determination to achieve inclusive growth by addressing structural inequalities and ensuring that tribal communities are not left behind in India’s development journey. By combining financial empowerment, bottom-up planning, and responsive governance, the initiative seeks to transform tribal areas into models of sustainable and equitable growth in line with the Viksit Bharat @2047 vision.