SRINAGAR: Central allocations for tribal development have risen fivefold over a decade, with the Development Action Plan for Scheduled Tribes (DAPST) increasing from Rs 24,594.45 crore in 2013–14 to Rs 123,232.61 crore in 2024–25, parliamentary records show — a sharp funding escalation that carries direct implications for Jammu and Kashmir’s tribal programmes.
The Ministry of Tribal Affairs told the Lok Sabha that the DAPST strategy now channels contributions from 41 ministries and departments to bridge infrastructure and service gaps in tribal areas. The reply highlights two national initiatives with immediate bearing on Jammu and Kashmir. Dharti Aaba Janjatiya Gram Utkarsh Abhiyan (DAJGUA), launched on 2 October 2024, carries an aggregate outlay of Rs 79,156 crore (central share Rs 56,333 crore; state share Rs 22,823 crore) and aims to saturate infrastructural deficits across 63,843 villages, covering 2,911 blocks in 549 districts and benefiting more than five crore tribals over five years. The ministry also reports that DAPST utilisation has stayed consistently high, exceeding 92 per cent of revised estimates over the last five years.
For Jammu and Kashmir, the parliamentary data lists a string of concrete interventions and funding flows in 2023–24 and 2024–25. Under the Eklavya Model Residential Schools (EMRS) programme, the Union Territory received Rs 891.40 lakh in 2023–24, and Rs 824.01 lakh in 2024–25; the Lok Sabha table records that six EMRSs had been sanctioned and all six were functional as of 31 December 2025. The Ministry also released Rs 770.85 lakh to tribal research institutes in 2023–24 and a further Rs 100 lakh in 2024–25 for institutional support and capacity building.
Scholarship and skilling flows to tribal students and entrepreneurs in the Union Territory are also visible in the data. The number of beneficiaries recorded under the pre-matric scholarship scheme in Jammu and Kashmir rose from 2,548 (academic year 2023–24) to 8,371 (2024–25), while post-matric scholarship beneficiaries increased from 7,319 to 15,309 over the same period. Financially, post-matric central releases to Jammu and Kashmir are listed at Rs 7.46 crore for 2023–24 and Rs 9.95 crore for 2024–25. In credit access, the National Scheduled Tribes Finance and Development Corporation (NSTFDC) disbursed loans amounting to Rs 295.19 lakh in 2023–24 and Rs 1,102.49 lakh in 2024–25 for beneficiaries in the Union Territory.
Beyond cash transfers and schools, the ministry’s data show modest support for civil society and local institutions: Jammu and Kashmir received Rs 49.28 lakh under the grants-in-aid scheme for voluntary organisations working for Scheduled Tribes in 2024–25, and the Tribal Research Institutes line item indicates sustained investment in research and preservation of tribal heritage.
