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Welfare of Vulnerable Sections – UPSC GS2

This module of the GS Paper 2: Polity, Governance, Social Justice & IR course covers schemes and institutions for scs/sts, women, children, elderly, persons with disabilities and minorities. It has 3 study lessons and a 24-question practice quiz. Free lessons can be read in full; premium lessons show a preview.

Lessons in this module

1. Welfare of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes: Laws, Institutions and Schemes

Free 7 min

The syllabus asks for "welfare schemes for vulnerable sections of the population by the Centre and States and the performance of these schemes; mechanisms, laws, institutions and bodies constituted for the protection and betterment of…

2. Women and Children: Laws, Institutions and Schemes

Premium 7 min

Women and children face specific vulnerabilities: sex-selective abortion, malnutrition, violence, child marriage, trafficking, unpaid care work and low participation in paid work. The Constitution allows the State to make special provisions for women and children…

3. Persons with Disabilities, Elderly, Minorities, Transgender Persons and Unorganised Workers

Premium 7 min

Census 2011 counted about 2.68 crore persons with disabilities, or 2.21% of the population. Experts consider this an undercount: surveys using broader definitions report higher figures. India ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of…

 Module quiz: Welfare of Vulnerable Sections (24 questions)

Maps & infographics in this module

Bar chart showing SCs at 16.6 percent and STs at 8.6 percent of India's population in 2011
Together SCs and STs form about a quarter of India's population.
Organogram of institutions, ministries, laws and local bodies for SC and ST welfare
Protection rests on constitutional bodies, nodal ministries, special laws and local self-government.
Horizontal bar chart comparing sex ratio 943 and child sex ratio 919 in Census 2011 with NFHS-5 sex ratio 1020 and sex ratio at birth 929
The overall ratio has improved, but the sex ratio at birth still shows a deficit of girls.
Organogram of Mission Shakti showing its two sub-schemes Sambal and Samarthya with their components
Mission Shakti merged several women-centred schemes into one umbrella in 2022.
Pie chart of religious composition in Census 2011: Hindus 79.8, Muslims 14.2, Christians 2.3, Sikhs 1.7, Buddhists 0.7, Jains 0.4 percent
Six communities are notified as national minorities under the NCM Act 1992.
Timeline from 2007 to 2021 of key laws and judgments on disability, elderly, transgender and unorganised workers
Most of these milestones reflect a shift towards a rights-based approach.

Frequently asked questions

Lessons: Welfare of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes: Laws, Institutions and Schemes; Women and Children: Laws, Institutions and Schemes; Persons with Disabilities, Elderly, Minorities, Transgender Persons and Unorganised Workers.

Answer: 8.6%. 8.6%.

Answer: 89th Amendment. 2003.

Answer: exclusion of anticipatory bail and preliminary inquiry. Restored after the Mahajan judgment.

Answer: Gram Sabha. Gram sabha.

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