RELIGIOUS MINORITY SCHEMES: Lion’s Share for One Community

STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI: The National Commission for Minorities (NCM) considers Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, and Persians as religious minorities in the country. However, the ground reality in Assam is that the Muslim community avails of the lion’s share of the benefits from central and state schemes meant for religious minorities.

According to official sources, state government schemes benefiting religious minorities, like the distribution of e-rickshaws, sewing machines, fashion designing machines, automatic paper plate-making machines, etc., have no applicants from target beneficiaries like Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, etc. This leads to the entire benefit of such schemes going to the Muslims in the state.

According to the 2011 Census report, the Muslim population in Assam comprises 34.22 percent. Christians comprise 3.4 percent, Jains 0.1 percent, Buddhists 0.2 percent, and Sikhs 0.1 percent.

According to official sources, the central schemes for religious minorities are pre-matriculation scholarships, post-matriculation scholarships, merit-cum-means scholarships, etc. The self-employment schemes meant for the religious minorities in the state are diplomas in medical laboratory technology, bachelors of medical laboratory technology, ANM training, GNM training, coaching for UPSC examinations, coaching for medical and engineering entrance tests, etc.

According to sources, the populations of other religious minorities (not Muslims) are fewer in number in the state. They are not aware of such schemes, nor is the government taking any initiative to make them aware of such schemes. This means that the funds from the central and state governments for the benefit of religious minorities go to only target beneficiaries belonging to one religious minority community in the state.

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