By Pervez Bari, TwoCircles.net,
New Delhi: The two-day Capacity Building Workshop on “Budget Analysis and Advocacy” here at the India Islamic Culture Centre, concluded on Saturday with the delegates resolving that they would prepare an advocacy agenda for improving the implementation process in the minority related programmes.
The delegates were unanimous in their resolve to disseminate the understanding, knowledge and information gained at the workshop about the policies and budgets meant for minorities/Muslims by holding such workshops for NGOs in their respective areas and regions from where they hailed on their return. The workshop was organised under the aegis of Centre for Budget and Governance Accountability, (CBGA).
The delegates of the workshop engrossed in group discussion.
The workshop helped the participants from all over the country comprehend the technicalities and methodologies involved in assessing budgets from a certain perspective. Such workshops play a critical role in spreading budget work in the country, since they try to enhance the capacity of the participants to actually carry out budget analysis and advocacy.
Policy Suggestions pertaining to Muslims for 12th Plan
Meanwhile, from the analysis of programmes and schemes meant for minorities, it is clear that there are a number of problems relating to programme implementation. First, the norms and guidelines of the PM’s 15-Point Programme and MSDP do not adequately address the needs and aspirations of the minorities, particularly Muslims. Second, the budgetary provisions are insufficient as compared to the total size of the minority/ Muslim population. Third, there is a lack of proper institutional mechanisms and inadequate staff strength for implementation of the schemes at the district and block levels. This has led to poor planning and delay in implementation. Fourth, most government officials and beneficiaries are not aware about the schemes and programmes run under the Ministry of Minority Affairs and PM’s 15-point programme.
Therefore, there is a need for sustained policy interventions that would place adequate funds, proper institutions and staff to ensure effective implementation by the states to bring religious minorities, particularly Muslims, at par with other general communities in terms of socio-economic development.
Meanwhile, Hyderabad-based social worker Mr. Aariz Mohammad addressing the last session to plan the way forward and future advocacy agenda exhorted the delegates to make sustainable efforts to continue awareness programmes about the processes of budgeting by the Union and State Governments and to assess the budget from the perspective of disadvantaged sections.
Mr. Aariz informed about that efforts made by his group in organising such workshops in Andhra Pradesh which bore fruits and the budget for the minorities was doubled by the state government.
Similarly, he said more than four dozen Muslim MPs were got together to call on Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh to submit a memorandum on Key Interventions for Muslims in 12th Five-Year-Plan. He revealed that following the meeting with the Prime Minister the demands of Selection of Minority Concentrated Blocks, (MCBs), with 15 per cent of the minority population for planning and unit of implementation to be ward of Gram Panchayats/town. The demand of expansion and coverage of Prime Minister’s new 15-Point Programme across ministries and departments was acceded from 12 to 27 ministries, he added.
He said the main thrust of the memorandum submitted to the Prime Minister was to ensuring the implementation of the recommendations of working group on Empowerment of Minorities for 12th Five-Year Plan and also recommendations made by NAC. The other important point was that of providing the adequate financial resources for 12th Plan period for Minorities which would be Rs.58588.78 crore.
Other eminent personalities who spoke at the workshop included Mr. Subrat Das, Executive Director CBGA, Dr. Abuzar Kamaaluddin, Principal of MPS Science College, Muzaffarpur, Prof. Shakeel Samdani of Aligarh Muslim University and president of Sir Syed Awareness Forum, Mr. Mohammad Khalid, secretary United Muslim Organisation, (UMO), Lucknow.
Mohammad Salim Engineer, general secretary of Jamaat-e-Islami Hind, who attended the workshop on the second day, presented a book entitled “A Guide to Uplift Minorities” to Mr. Subrat Das, Executive Director CBGA, on the occasion. The book has been compiled by Mr. Abdul Rasheed Agwan and is edited by Mr. M. Gauhar Iqbal.
The delegates of the workshop along with the officials of CBGA posing for a group photograph.
On Friday, K Rahman Khan, Member of Parliament and former Deputy chairman of Rajya Sabha, had inaugurated the workshop. Mr. Khan in his inaugural address had called upon the NGOs participating in the workshop to create a social awareness in the masses and make a targeted approach in getting government schemes implemented for the welfare of minorities.
CBGA promotes transparent, accountable and participatory governance, and a people-centred perspective in the policies shaping up government’s budgets. It is engaged in research on public policies and budgets focus on the priorities underlying budgets, quality of government interventions in the social sector, responsiveness of budgets to disadvantaged sections of population and structural issues in India’s fiscal federalism. The CBGA’s efforts also include building the capacities of various stakeholders on budgets and policy advocacy. ([email protected])