Proposals to declare 496 villages as Scheduled Areas under review

Andhra Pradesh Tribal Welfare Minister Gummadi Sandhyarani on Monday (September 22) informed the Assembly that the government has prepared proposals to declare 496 villages, where tribal population exceeds 50%, as Scheduled Areas. The proposals are currently under examination.

Responding to a question raised by MLA Bandaru Satyanarayana Murthy, the Minister said the Government of India has laid down eligibility criteria for declaring Scheduled Areas, which include higher tribal population, administrative convenience as a district or block unit, adequate size, and relative economic backwardness compared to neighbouring regions.

She explained that such proposals are first sent by district collectors to the Andhra Pradesh Tribal Advisory Council, then forwarded to the State Cabinet, and finally submitted through the Governor to the Union Ministry of Tribal Affairs.

Ms. Sandhyarani said a report was sought from the Anakapalli District Collector on including certain villages in Madugula constituency as Scheduled Areas. She noted that nine gram panchayats, comprising 60 villages with over 25,000 tribal residents, had been identified.

The Minister highlighted that the State allocated ₹8,159 crore for tribal welfare this year. Key initiatives include the construction of 1,069 km of roads under the Adavi Thalli Baata scheme at a cost of ₹1,005 crore, setting up BSNL towers with ₹3.45 crore, and providing 200 units of free electricity per family every month under the Babu Jagjivan Ram scheme.

She reiterated the government’s commitment to improving education, healthcare, employment, transport, and basic infrastructure for tribal communities, adding that more welfare schemes would be rolled out in the future.