Transgender communities are often targeted and misread in the societies that they exist within. The Vasundhara scheme held out the lofty goal of uplifting Odisha’s landless – the destitute, the disabled, and even the ostracized transgender minorities. The scheme focuses on providing land allotments to these marginalized groups to enhance their socio-economic capital social standing and abilities. By allotting government land for homesteads, it presented a vision of social justice and earthly shelter for the vulnerable. Yet for many, the promise of Vasundhara remains a myth.
Tales of corruption, arbitrary exclusion, lack of amenities, and denied welfare permeate its implementation. Inept governance has stranded the marginalized in limbo, neither housed nor empowered. The tears of the transgender community erased from bureaucratic records are a testament that paper policies alone cannot confer dignity or land rights. Without an honest political commitment to reform, Vasundhara risks being remembered as just another scheme of tears and not the harbinger of inclusive, egalitarian change it set out to be.
The Plight Of Transgender Communities and Gender Minorities In Odisha
Transgender communities and gender minorities in Odisha face many challenges and discrimination in society. A key issue is the lack of legal recognition and rights – many are excluded from welfare schemes, employment, and basic services due to no official ID cards or documents reflecting their gender identity. Stigma and transphobia also lead to social exclusion, abuse, and violence. Access to education, healthcare, and housing is limited due to prejudice. Within families, many transgender youth face abuse, rejection, and forced hetero-normative practices like marriage.
This forces many into unsafe situations like begging, sex work, or migration. Though some constitutional rights exist, implementation is poor. These manifold issues of injustice, violence, poverty, and disempowerment underscore the plight of transgender and gender minorities in the state. Targeted policy interventions around legal rights, sensitization, affirmative action, social inclusion, and livelihood support are crucial to ensure equality and dignity for the marginalized community.
What is the Vasundhara scheme?
The Vasundhara scheme is a land reform program implemented by the Government of Odisha to provide homestead land and property rights to beneficiaries with the aim of reducing poverty. The scheme aims to provide homestead land and property rights to beneficiaries in order to reduce poverty. Under the scheme, 4 decimals of government land are provided to eligible beneficiaries who are legal residents of Odisha and do not already own homestead land or have insufficient land for living purposes.
The annual income eligibility limit is Rs 15,000. The scheme specifically targets landless and homeless families in both rural and urban areas of the state. It also has special provisions to allot homestead land to transgender and differently-abled persons belonging to economically vulnerable sections.
The Revenue and Disaster Management Department of the Government of Odisha has been implementing the Vasundhara Yojana, a land reform program, in Odisha, India. Giving homestead land and giving beneficiaries of that property legal rights is intended to decrease poverty. The government will provide beneficiaries who are legally residing in the state of Odisha with 4 decimals of government land.
The applicant must swear under oath that neither the beneficiary nor any member of his or her family giving together has any homestead land anywhere in the state or has a decimal of land in villages under Tahasil that is insufficient for living purposes. If a person has a small amount of land for a homestead, such as 1 or 2 decimals, that is insufficient will be allotted under this scheme.
The beneficiary must have an annual income of less than 15,000 rupees, and the income of unskilled workers in the agricultural sector is based on the state government’s minimum wage.
Odisha has 52,511 revenue villages, and there are roughly 4,091 pada villages that need to be changed. There are 104 urban areas in the state, including 63 Notified Area Councils (NACs), 37 municipalities, and three municipal Corporations. 1000 homeless families live in urban and rural areas, and the government has started a program to provide land for those in need in urban areas outside of slum areas. The Housing and Urban Development Department will create a plan for the relocation of urban residents in need on government land who do not live in slums and who are not covered by the Odisha Land Rights Slum Dwellers Act, 2017.
A survey conducted in 2004–2005 found that the state has about 2,493,347 homestead-less households. Out of them, 229,885 families received homestead land between 2005 and 2008, 149,266 in 2011, and 115,827 in 2013. The state government has distributed homestead plots to almost 5.42 lakh families, and thousands of destitute landless families have acquired modest plots thanks to a government effort. Homesteads have also been distributed to transgender and differently-abled people. Around 10,000 homeless transgender residents of Odisha received homestead land from the state government in 2017.
Issues with the Vasundhara scheme?
Despite its noble aims, the implementation of the Vasundhara scheme has faced many challenges. There have been reports of corruption and nepotism in selecting beneficiaries, resulting in the exclusion of the most deserving and needy families. Proper land records and titling issues have hampered the process of allotment. Beneficiaries have faced long delays in getting possession of land distributed under the scheme.
In some cases, the allotted land is of poor quality and lacks basic amenities like roads, water, and electricity. Financial constraints make it difficult for beneficiaries to build houses on the allotted plots. There is also a lack of follow-up support after land allotment to ensure its productive use. Tackling these systemic gaps regarding transparency, infrastructure, and post-allotment support is key to addressing the issues plaguing the Vasundhara scheme.
State Schemes And State Failures
While the Vasundhara scheme reflects the Odisha government’s effort to provide land rights to the homeless, there have been many shortcomings in its implementation. Lack of transparency, exclusionary practices, delays, and corruption have hampered the scheme’s effectiveness.
This highlights the gap between well-intentioned state policies and their successful ground-level execution, especially for vulnerable sections. The failures also point to systemic issues of governance weaknesses, resource constraints, and social inequities that need addressing.
There is a need for more accountable and participatory processes in scheme delivery, as well as greater investments in amenities, infrastructure, and livelihood support. The vulnerabilities of minority groups like transgender persons also require special policy focus. Addressing these concerns can help bridge the gap between scheme promises and realities, to truly uplift the lives of the marginalized.
How To Redo, and Undo
To enhance the effectiveness and transparency of the Vasundhara scheme, measures like strengthening grievance redressal, decentralizing beneficiary selection, digitizing land records, ensuring time-bound allotment, and monitoring through online systems have been recommended. The Odisha government could also take steps to provide basic amenities on allotted plots, promote housing and livelihoods for beneficiaries, and enable special assistance for transgender recipients.
Social audits and community participation in the scheme are equally important. Undoing past failures requires political will to reform governance, address corruption, and ensure inclusive, accountable implementation. With community oversight and participation, the Vasundhara promise of shelter and livelihood for the vulnerable can be fulfilled in Odisha.
Sources / Further Readings:
- Vasundhara | Revenue and Disaster Management Department
- Odisha’s ‘Vasundhara’ scheme: Allotted land out of reach of beneficiaries
- Tehsildar among six arrested for Vasundhara Scheme scam in Odisha
- Six government officials under vigilance scanner over Vasundhara scheme scam in Odisha
- Reporter Special: Allegation Of Corruption In Basundhara Scheme In Odisha’s Bhadrak || KalingaTV
- Odisha vigilance arrests OAS officer, 4 RIs in Vasundhara land scam | Bhubaneswar News – Times of India