Recently, a review was held for various initiatives under the ‘Sankalp Se Siddhi-Mission Vand Dhan’, led by the Minister of Tribal Affairs. These plans are implemented by the Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India (TRIFED), aiming to foster the socio-economic development of India’s tribal people by marketing their products.
Understanding TRIFED
TRIFED was established in 1987 as a national-level apex organization functioning under the Ministry of Tribal Affairs. It looks to uplift the socio-economic conditions of tribal people in the country by promoting tribal products like metal craft, textiles, paintings, and pottery – significant sources of income for the tribal community.
The ‘Sankalp Se Siddhi’ Initiative
Introduced by the central government in 2021, the ‘Sankalp Se Siddhi’ initiative or ‘Mission Van Dhan’, aligns with the Prime Minister’s vision of a sustainable livelihood for India’s tribal population. TRIFED aims to expand its operations through the convergence of schemes from diverse ministries and departments, launching a series of tribal development programmes in mission mode.
Under this mission, the establishment of various Van Dhan Vikas Kendras (VDVKs), haat bazaars, mini TRIFOOD units, common facility centres, TRIFOOD parks, SFRUTI clusters, tribal retail stores, and e-commerce platforms for TRIFOOD and tribal products is on the agenda.
Impact on the Tribal Community
In the last two years, the ‘Mechanism for Marketing of Minor Forest Produce (MFP) through Minimum Support Price (MSP) & Development of Value Chain for MFP’ program has made a significant impact on the tribal ecosystem. TRIFED has also managed to infuse Rs. 3000 crores into the tribal economy during challenging times with the help of government backing.
Van Dhan Tribal Start-ups
Van Dhan tribal start-ups have emerged as a major source of employment for tribal gatherers, forest dwellers, and home-bound tribal artisans. They are a component of the MSP & Development of Value Chain for MFP scheme.
Van Dhan Vikas Yojana
The Van Dhan Scheme is an initiative launched in 2018 targeting livelihood generation for tribal gatherers and their transformation into entrepreneurs. It supports the formation of tribal community-owned Van Dhan Vikas Kendra Clusters in predominantly forested tribal districts for skill upgradation, capacity building training, and setting up primary processing and value addition facilities.
Mechanism for Marketing of Minor Forest Produce (MFP)
This scheme provides a minimum support price to gatherers of forest produce acting as a social safety measure primarily for the ST members. The idea is to ensure fair returns for their work in collection, processing, storage, packaging, and transportation of MFP, encompassing all non-timber forest produce of plant origin.
Tech For Tribals
With the goal of transforming five crore tribal entrepreneurs through capacity building and imparting entrepreneurial skills, this initiative ensures a higher success rate by empowering them to run their businesses with marketable products having quality certifications.
TRIFOOD Scheme
Launched in August 2020, it promotes value addition to MFP. TRIFOOD parks will process foods from minor forest produce and other foods gathered by the tribal people in that region.
Village and Digital Connect Initiative
To maximize the reach of existing schemes and initiatives to the tribal population, TRIFED’s regional officials across the country have been visiting identified villages with significant tribal presence.
