Development of Scheduled Castes in India A Review

Abstract

The polity of our country has realised the significance of the development of weaker sections specially the scheduled castes since Independence. Consequently, planned efforts have been made for their upliftment by the government. This paper has examined the progress made regarding their social (health, housing, workforce participation, availability of basic amenities and wage employment under income generation schemes), educational and occupational status. Based on secondary data, it has been found that no doubt, a positive change on various socio-economic parameters has been recorded but, that change has touched merely less than half of their population. Further, the gap between the mainstream and scheduled caste population persists significantly in our traditional society. Therefore, there is an urgent need to reorient and focus the strategy to support the lesser privileged by providing qualitative education and infusing among them the individualistic and moralistic values of self-denial, temperance, forethought, thrift, sobriety and self-reliance essential to bring these downtrodden into the national mainstream..