PROMOTING EQUALITY OF OPPORTUNITIES FOR SC/ST AND EDUCATIONALLY BACKWARD MINORITIES
In pursuance of the policy parameters for SC/ST and other educationally backward sections, the following measures have been taken:
A scheme of providing remedial and special coaching for upgrading the merit of SC/ST students has been formulated and circulated to the State Governments. The objective of the scheme is to upgrade the merit' of SC/ST students by providing them extra coaching both remedial (in Classes IX to XII) and special (in Classes XI-XII) with a view to removing their educational deficiencies and facilitating their admission in professional courses. The scheme has been started with 1,000 students (670 SCs and 330 STs) in 50 schools. All States/UTs except Bihar, Gujarat, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh and Delhi have identified 34 schools for coaching 674 (496 SCs and 178 STs) students. The States which have not identified the schools for implementing the scheme have been requested to select the schools.
Ten community polytechnics have been located in minority concentration areas with a view to extending benefits of vocational and technical skill training to persons belonging to educationally backward minorities. About 10,000 persons have so far been trained and more than 1,400 are undergoing training in the various skills.
Four Resource Centre at Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi, Osmania University, Hyderabad and Marathwada University, Aurangabad have been established to arrange training courses for teachers, principals and managers of minority managed institutions.
The CABE Committee on Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and other educationally deprived groups met on 25th August, 1988 and reviewed in detail the various schemes meant for the development of educationally deprived groups and made significant suggestions. The important items discussed include monitoring proforma to monitor major programmes for educational development of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes; effective microplanning for location of facilities where SC/ST children from a significant population; rationalisation of procedure for disbursement of scholarships; preparation of primers in tribal languages; establishment of nodal agencies in States.
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