Why in the News?

The PM JANMAN presents a new opportunity to transform the lives of India’s Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups.

Government Initiatives:

• Pradhan Mantri PVTG Development Mission. Announced for the fiscal year 2023-24 to improve socio-economic conditions of PVTGs.
• Pradhan Mantri Janjati Adivasi Nyaya Maha Abhiyan (PM-JANMAN) launched in November 2023.
•  Pradhan Mantri Adi Adarsh Gram Yojana, Integrated Tribal Development Project (ITDP) and Tribal Sub-Plan (TSP).

PM JANMAN Objectives:

• Provide essential services to PVTGs, including safe housing, clean drinking water, and sanitation.
• The largest Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) scheme in the initiative.
• Aims to reach 4.90 lakh PVTG households by 2026.
• Households to receive ₹2.39 lakh each in three instalments.

Technical Challenges in the PM JANMAN Housing Scheme

App Functionality and Data Gathering:

• Data Collection Areas: The ‘Awaas+’ app records geographical locations, household profiles with geo-tagging, and bank account details for cash transfers.
• Mandatory Jobcard: Registration requires a jobcard, but many have been deleted, affecting PVTGs’ eligibility.

Jobcard Issues:

• Deletion of Jobcards: Widespread deletion of over eight crore MGNREGA jobcards in the past two years has led to many PVTGs being ineligible for the scheme.
• Jobcard Misuse: Cases of fraudulent registrations with someone else’s job cards further complicate the registration process.

Village List Discrepancies:

• Inconsistent Data: The pre-populated list of villages in the app does not match the MGNREGA Management Information System (MIS). For example, the app lists 22 villages while the MIS lists 31 villages for ‘Vanjari’ Panchayat in Andhra Pradesh, causing confusion.

Aadhaar-related Issues:

• Name Matching: The app requires names as per Aadhaar records but does not guide what to do if Aadhaar is absent.
• PVTG Identification: The app does not explicitly identify PVTGs, using a default ‘ST’ option, leading to non-PVTG registrations.

Certification Issues:

• Local Certification: Ineligible registrations prompt local officials to ask PVTGs for certification from sarpanches/mukhiyas.
• Conflict of Interest: Non-PVTG sarpanches/mukhiyas in mixed communities may act against the interests of PVTGs, complicating the certification process.

Geo-tagging Problems:

• Network Issues: Geo-tagging required for planned construction locations faces chaos due to poor network connectivity, hindering accurate data capture.

Bank Selection Complexity:

• Overwhelming Options: The app’s dropdown lists for banks are excessively long. For example, selecting ‘Commercial Bank’ shows over 300 options, and choosing ‘State Bank of India’ in Andhra Pradesh presents over 500 branches, adding unnecessary complexity for both PVTGs and officials.

Opportunity/Way Forward for PM JANMAN Housing Scheme

• Simplify App Interface: Update the ‘Awaas+’ app to have a more user-friendly interface and reduce unnecessary complexities, such as the long dropdown lists for banks.
• Clear Guidelines for Aadhaar: Provide explicit instructions on what names to use in the absence of Aadhaar, ensuring all eligible PVTGs can register.
• Verify Jobcard Authenticity: Introduce robust mechanisms to prevent fraudulent registrations using others’ jobcards.
• Improve Network Infrastructure: Invest in better network infrastructure in remote areas to support the geo-tagging feature.

Mains PYQ:

Q Given the diversities among tribal communities in India, in which specific contexts should they be considered as a single category? (UPSC IAS/2022)

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