'Not govt policy to cut funds': Minister signals legal shield for SC/ST allocations

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Kerala government is evaluating the feasibility of introducing special legislation to ensure that budget allocations for Scheduled Castes (SC) and Scheduled Tribes (ST) cannot be slashed or diverted, Minister K.A. Thulasi informed the State Assembly.

Replying to a question raised by legislator V. Muraleedharan, the Minister clarified that reducing welfare funds for marginalised communities directly contradicts the policy framework of the current administration.

"When the Chief Minister presented the state budget, additional funds were explicitly earmarked for the welfare and developmental activities of these communities," Thulasi said, adding that the government's priorities were already made clear to the House through the budget announcements.

Assuring the Assembly of long-term safeguards, the Minister stated that the government would seriously examine the necessary legal mechanisms to permanently prevent any future cuts to the fund corpus allocated for SC/ST welfare.