Why In News?

As of 2026, PM-JUGA is being implemented across 63,843 villages in 549 districts and 2,911 blocks, covering 30 States/UTs and 5+ crore tribal people.

 

 

What Is Pradhan Mantri Janjatiya Unnat Gram Abhiyan (PM-JUGA)?

It is also known as Dharti Aaba Janjatiya Gram Utkarsh Abhiyan, is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme designed to achieve saturation coverage of essential services, social infrastructure, and livelihood opportunities across tribal-majority villages and aspirational districts in India. 

 

The Prime Minister launched the Abhiyan on 2 October 2024 at Hazaribag, Jharkhand, with implementation planned up to 31 March 2029.

 

Nodal Ministry: The Ministry of Tribal Affairs coordinates the mission, while 17 line ministries implement their respective interventions.

 

Core Approach: It uses convergence + saturation + gap-based planning, rather than creating an entirely new scheme for every tribal development need.

 

Major Objectives

  • Infrastructure: Close gaps in housing, roads, electricity, drinking water and telecommunications through convergence with existing schemes.

  • Health: Improve access through mobile medical units, health facilities, nutrition and Anganwadi services, especially in remote tribal settlements.

  • Education: Expand hostels and educational infrastructure, reducing distance and access barriers for tribal students.

  • Livelihoods: Promote skills, entrepreneurship, agriculture, animal husbandry, fisheries, Van Dhan and tribal marketing to strengthen household incomes.

  • Digital Inclusion: Improve telecommunication and digital connectivity so tribal villages can access education, banking, markets and government services.

 

Which Villages Are Covered?

  • Village Criteria: Tribal-majority villages generally include those with 500+ population and at least 50% ST population, while specified Aspirational Blocks include villages with at least 50 tribal persons.

  • Data-Based Selection: Village gaps are identified using Mission Antyodaya 2022–23 data alongside Census 2011, enabling targeted infrastructure planning.

 

 

Key Interventions

  • Housing: PM-JUGA targets 20 lakh pucca houses through PMAY-Gramin, directly addressing the housing gap in tribal-majority villages.

  • Roads: The programme targets 25,000 km of rural roads, improving market, school, healthcare and administrative connectivity.

  • Water: Jal Jeevan Mission interventions aim at Functional Household Tap Connections, alongside community water points for smaller hamlets.

  • Electricity: The mission targets unelectrified households and public institutions through RDSS, including approximately 2.35 lakh connections.

  • Education: Tribal hostels provide residential support where distance and remoteness restrict school access.

  • Livelihood: Van Dhan Vikas Kendras, Tribal Multipurpose Marketing Centres and skills support aim to convert forest and local resources into sustainable income opportunities.

  • Tourism: Tribal homestays can connect local culture and natural landscapes with tourism markets while creating community-level income opportunities.

 

Strategic Significance

  • Shift to Saturation: Moves tribal welfare from piecemeal allocations to 100% "saturation coverage" of basic amenities in 63,000 target villages.

  • Whole-of-Government Approach: Converges 17 line ministries under one umbrella, breaking administrative silos.

  • Scaling the PM-JANMAN Model: PM-JUGA builds upon the operational learnings and targeted successes of the PM-JANMAN (Pradhan Mantri Janjati Adivasi Nyaya Maha Abhiyan) scheme, which explicitly catered to Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs).

  • Security & LWE Mitigation: Targets 549 districts, many overlapping with Left-Wing Extremism affected zones, reducing geographic alienation through roads, telecom, and healthcare.

  • Economic Formalisation: Transitions forest dwellers from subsistence to commercial value-chains by supporting FRA patta holders and creating Tribal Homestays.

  • Human Capital Boost: Tackles low Gross Enrolment Ratios (GER) and high dropouts via dedicated tribal hostels, alongside deploying 1,000 Mobile Medical Units.

  • Cooperative Federalism: Enforces a strict cost-sharing formula (₹56,333 cr Centre / ₹22,823 cr State) that mandates tight federal-state coordination.

 

 

 

 

 

Source: PIB

 

 

 

PRACTICE QUESTION

Q. Consider the following statements with reference to the Pradhan Mantri Janjatiya Unnat Gram Abhiyan (PM-JUGA):

  1. It is a centrally sponsored scheme aimed at achieving saturation coverage of tribal families in tribal-majority villages and Aspirational Districts.  

  2. The financial outlay of the mission is funded exclusively through a special central assistance pool managed directly by the Ministry of Tribal Affairs.  

  3. The mission comprises multiple targeted interventions that are implemented jointly by several line ministries through funds allocated under the Development Action Plan for Scheduled Tribes (DAPST).  

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

A) 1 only

B) 1 and 3 only

C) 2 and 3 only

D) 1, 2 and 3  

Answer: B) 1 and 3 only

Explanation:

Statement 1 is correct: The Pradhan Mantri Janjatiya Unnat Gram Abhiyan (PM-JUGA) is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme explicitly designed to adopt a saturation approach. It aims to cover basic social infrastructure, health, education, and livelihood gaps for tribal families residing in tribal-majority villages and Aspirational Districts.

Statement 2 is incorrect: The scheme has a total financial outlay of ₹79,156 crore, where the Central Share is ₹56,333 crore and the State Share is ₹22,823 crore. It is not funded exclusively by a single pool or administered solely by the Ministry of Tribal Affairs; instead, it relies on a cost-sharing architecture between the Centre and the States.

Statement 3 is correct: PM-JUGA functions through a multi-sectoral, whole-of-government convergence mechanism. It features 25 targeted interventions executed collaboratively by 17 line ministries/departments. Each ministry utilizes funds systematically earmarked under the Development Action Plan for Scheduled Tribes (DAPST) over a 5-year timeline.