Question : Awareness Campaign for Minority Communities

(a) whether the Government has evaluated the performance of its awareness campaign initiated to create awareness of the schemes/programmes among the minority communities meant for their welfare in the country;

(b) if so, the details and the outcome thereof and if not, the reasons therefor;

(c) whether there is an increase in beneficiaries of the said schemes/ programmes after such awareness campaign;

(d) if so, the details thereof, State/UT wise and scheme/programme-wise and if not, the reasons therefor during each of the last three years and the current year; and

(e) the other steps taken/being taken by the Government in this direction?

MINISTER OF MINORITY AFFAIRS
(SHRI MUKHTAR ABBAS NAQVI)

(a) & (b): The awareness campaign is carried out under the Scheme of Research/Studies, Monitoring and Evaluation of Development Schemes including Publicity of this Ministry to create awareness among the six centrally notified minority communities, namely, Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists, Parsis and Jains, about the schemes/programmes implemented by this Ministry for their welfare in the country. An evaluation study of this scheme has been conducted in 2014. A copy of this Study Report is available on the website of the Ministry at www.minorityaffairs.gov.in. Based on the recommendations of this Study, the scheme has been revised and approved for implementation during 2017-18 to 2019-20. A copy of the Guidelines of this scheme is also available on the website of the Ministry at www.minorityaffairs.gov.in.

(c) to (e): The Government has taken up multi-media campaign to spread awareness of welfare schemes meant for minorities through print and electronic media, All India Radio Network including FM Channels, and websites all over the country. Pocket booklets and pamphlets on various schemes / programmes of the Ministry are published in Hindi, English, Urdu and other regional languages. In order to directly reach out to the public especially minority communities and spread awareness among them, ‘Progress Panchayats’ are organized in various places. Regional Coordination & Review Conferences are also held with State Governments from time to time where, inter-alia, information about the Ministry’s schemes is provided. In addition, outdoor publicity is also being done by organizing ‘Hunar Haat’. Recently, Hunar Haats have been organized at (i) India International Trade Fair 2016 and 2017, (ii) Baba Kharak Singh Marg, New Delhi in February 2017 & 2018, (iii) Puducherry in September, 2017, and at Mumbai in January, 2018, to further promote traditional crafts/arts, generate employment and strengthen their market linkages.

Awareness campaigns carried out by this Ministry have created positive impact on the targeted beneficiaries which has resulted in increase in the number of applications received in case of the three scholarship schemes, namely, Pre-matric, Post-matric and Merit-cum-Means based scholarship schemes, of this Ministry. Similarly, other schemes of the Ministry have also been benefitted through positive impact on the targetted groups through the nationwide awareness campaigns. The State/UT-wise details of applications received and number of beneficiaries under the said three scholarship schemes are available on the website of the Ministry at www.minorityaffairs.gov.in.


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