SCRIPTING FUTURE HISTORIES - Sun Media Pte Ltd

primary objective is creation of additional wage employment
opportunities during the period of acute shortage of wage
employment through manual work for the rural poor living below
the poverty line.
■ National Social Assistance Programme: The objective of
the scheme is to provide social assistance benefit to poor
households in the case of old age, death of primary breadwinner
and maternity.
■ Annapurna: The scheme provides food security to those
indigent senior citizens who are not covered under the Targeted
Public Distribution System (TPDS) and who have no income of
their own and none to take care of them in the village.
■ Indira Awaas Yojana: The scheme is a cash subsidy based
programme, under which assistance is provided to rural BPL
families for constructing dwelling units on their own using their
own design and technology.
Women’s Empowerment
The Ministry of Women and Child Development, as the nodal agency
for all matters pertaining to welfare, development and empowerment
of women, has evolved schemes and programmes for their benefit.
These schemes are spread across a broader spectrum such
as women’s need for shelter, security, safety, legal aid, justice,
information, maternal health, food, nutrition etc as well as their need
for economic sustenance through skill development, education, and
access to credit and marketing.
■ Economic Empowerment: Schemes to ensure provision of
training, employment and income-generation activities with both
‘forward’ and ‘backward’ linkages with the ultimate objective of
making all potential women economically independent and selfreliant.
■ STEP: The government has allotted Rs 240 crore (approx.
US$ 43.3 million) in the 11th Plan for providing provide skills and
new knowledge to poor and assetless women in the traditional
sectors.
Social Development
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