Thiruvananthapuram:
Three scheduled castes and scheduled tribes (SC/ST) outfits have urged Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy to take over the SC/ST welfare portfolio to ensure proper utilisation of funds meant for these sections.
The present SC/ST minister PK Jayalakshmi had failed to utilise funds worth Rs 20 crore allotted to the scheduled classes, Adivasi Gothra Maha Sabha leader CK Janu, SC/ST development council chairman KK Narayanan and Land Reforms Committee convenor M Geethanandan said in a statement in Thiruvananthapuram.
The minister squandered Rs 2 crore allotted for the tribal festival 'Gothrayanam' held at Mananthavady recently, they alleged.
According to the statement, no rehabilitation scheme for scheduled classes was taken up this year though the budget had set apart Rs 20 crore for the purpose. There were 85,000 landless tribals in the state, the statement said.