The Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment provided a status update on financial assistance under social welfare schemes in response to a Rajya Sabha query. The Central Government merged the Dr. Ambedkar Scheme for Social Integration through Inter-Caste Marriages and the Dr. Ambedkar National Relief to the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes Victims of Atrocities Scheme with the Centrally Sponsored Scheme for the Implementation of the Protection of Civil Rights Act, 1955 and the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, effective from 31 March 2023. This merger was implemented to avoid duplication in scheme implementation.
Despite the merger, the Dr. Ambedkar Foundation continued processing pending cases that arose prior to the merger under the Inter-Caste Marriage scheme. Financial assistance totaling ₹10.66 crore has been released to 457 beneficiaries across three fiscal years: 68 beneficiaries during 2023-24, 11 beneficiaries during 2024-25, and 378 beneficiaries during 2025-26. The scheme is implemented by respective State Governments and Union Territory Administrations, with the responsibility for effective implementation resting with them, while central assistance is provided to support these efforts.