**Executive Summary**
This document responds to Unstarred Question No. 2316 in Lok Sabha, concerning the SAMVAD Scheme, an initiative to improve access to justice for Adivasis and Denotified/Nomadic Tribes. The scheme, launched in April 2025 by the National Legal Services Authority (NALSA), aims to address systemic barriers faced by these communities. The response outlines the objectives, key components, implementation details, monitoring framework, and financial aspects of the scheme.
**Key Points / Main Content**
* **Scheme Overview:**
* The SAMVAD Scheme aims to strengthen access to justice for Scheduled Tribes (STs), Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs), and De-Notified/Nomadic Tribes (DNTs).
* It focuses on providing legal assistance in areas such as land and forest rights, displacement, rehabilitation, documentation, welfare schemes, and social security.
* **Implementation Strategy:**
* Establishes SAMVAD Units at the District level.
* Involves identification of tribal communities in each Taluk.
* Employs trained panel lawyers and para-legal volunteers from tribal areas.
* **Outreach and Awareness:**
* Utilizes a community-based and outreach-driven approach, conducting legal awareness programs in tribal habitations.
* Includes door-to-door outreach, legal literacy sessions in local languages, legal services camps, and coordination with Gram Sabhas and local institutions.
* Focuses on early legal intervention and facilitation of access to government welfare schemes.
* **Coverage and Impact:**
* 690 SAMVAD Units have been constituted at the district level, enabling nationwide institutional coverage.
* In Karnataka, the scheme has been operationalized across all 31 districts, identifying diverse tribal communities.
* 158 awareness programs have been conducted in Karnataka, reaching 9680 beneficiaries.
* **Monitoring and Reporting:**
* Features a structured monitoring and reporting framework with quarterly reports from various levels of Legal Services Committees and Authorities.
* NALSA consolidates and reviews these reports at the national level to ensure uniform implementation and accountability.
* Includes a revised roadmap for consolidated biennial reports.
* **Financial Details:**
* State-wise details of funds allocated, released, and utilized are provided in Annexure-A, including specific information for Maharashtra.
* District-level interventions under the SAMVAD Scheme have been implemented in the Jalgaon Lok Sabha constituency.
**Impact Analysis**
**Tribal Communities (STs, PVTGs, DNTs)**
* **Impact:** Improved legal awareness, access to legal services, and access to government welfare schemes, addressing systemic barriers they face.
* **Action Required:** Engage with SAMVAD Units, participate in awareness programs, and utilize available legal assistance for their rights and entitlements.
**State and District Legal Services Authorities**
* **Impact:** Responsible for implementing and monitoring the SAMVAD Scheme within their jurisdictions, improving last-mile delivery of legal services.
* **Action Required:** Establish and manage SAMVAD Units, conduct outreach activities, submit periodic reports, and ensure uniform implementation and accountability.
**National Legal Services Authority (NALSA)**
* **Impact:** Oversees the nationwide implementation of the SAMVAD Scheme, consolidating reports, ensuring accountability, and addressing region-specific justice delivery gaps.
* **Action Required:** Monitor and review reports, provide guidance and support to State and District Legal Services Authorities, and continuously improve the scheme based on data-driven monitoring.
Key Entities Referenced
NALSA (National Legal Services Authority): The agency that launched the SAMVAD Scheme to ensure access to justice.
SAMVAD Scheme: A scheme to strengthen access to justice for marginalized, vulnerable Adivasis and De-Notified/Nomadic Tribes.
Ministry of Law and Justice: The ministry responsible for the SAMVAD Scheme.
Karnataka: The state that is particularly focused upon in the SAMVAD scheme.
GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
MINISTRY OF LAW AND JUSTICE
DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
LOK SABHA
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 2316
TO BE ANSWERED ON FRIDAY, THE 13th FEBRUARY, 2026
SAMVAD SCHEME – ACCESS TO JUSTICE FOR ADIVASIS AND
DENOTIFIED/NOMADIC TRIBES
†2316. SHRI DAMODAR AGRAWAL:
SHRI KALI CHARAN SINGH:
SHRI PRATAP CHANDRA SARANGI:
SMT. VIJAYLAKSHMI DEVI:
SHRI BHOJRAJ NAG:
SHRI P C MOHAN:
SHRI DINESHBHAI MAKWANA:
SMT. MAHIMA KUMARI MEWAR:
DR. VINOD KUMAR BIND:
SHRI SUKANTA KUMAR PANIGRAHI:
SMT. SMITA UDAY WAGH:
Will the Minister of LAW AND JUSTICE be pleased to state:
(a) the objectives and key components of the SAMVAD Scheme, 2025;
(b) the manner in which this scheme seeks to strengthen legal awareness, access and delivery of
legal services for the marginalized, vulnerable tribal and Denotified/Nomadic tribal communities,
particularly in Karnataka;
(c) the number of States/Union Territories covered under the said scheme during the year 2025
and the number of Samvad Units established, legal awareness programmes organized and
beneficiaries provided assistance in this regard during the said period, especially in Karnataka;
(d) the details of the monitoring framework adopted for the scheme, reporting timelines and the
proposed future roadmap for expanding it and bridging region-specific justice delivery gaps;
(e) the details of funds allocated, released and utilised, State-wise, with specific information
relating to Maharashtra; and
(f) whether any district or constituency-level interventions are planned or implemented under the
Scheme in Jalgaon Lok Sabha constituency and, if so, the monitoring framework, reporting
timelines and future roadmap to scale up the Scheme and address region-specific justice delivery
gaps?
1ANSWER
MINISTER OF STATE (INDEPENDENT CHARGE) OF THE MINISTRY OF LAW
AND JUSTICE; AND MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF
PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS
(SHRI ARJUN RAM MEGHWAL)
(a) : The NALSA (SAMVAD-Strengthening Access to Justice for Marginalized, Vulnerable
Adivasis and De-Notified/ Nomadic Tribes) Scheme, 2025 launched by National Legal Services
Authority (NALSA) in April 2025 has been formulated to ensure effective access to justice for
Scheduled Tribes (STs), Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs), and De-Notified/
Nomadic Tribes (DNTs) who face systemic barriers in accessing legal remedies and welfare
entitlements.
The Scheme provides for the creation of dedicated SAMVAD Units at the District level,
identification of tribal communities in each Taluk, preparation of annual action plans, deployment
of trained panel lawyers and para-legal volunteers from tribal areas, and provision of legal
assistance in matters relating to land and forest rights, displacement, rehabilitation,
documentation, welfare schemes, and social security.
(b) and (c): The Scheme adopts a community-based and outreach-driven approach to improve legal
awareness and delivery of services in remote and tribal areas. SAMVAD Units conduct legal
awareness programmes in tribal habitations, door-to-door outreach, legal literacy sessions in local
languages, legal services camps, and coordination with Gram Sabhas and local institutions. The
Scheme also focuses on early legal intervention, assistance in documentation and entitlement
claims, and facilitation of access to government welfare schemes, thereby ensuring last-mile
delivery of legal services in culturally sensitive and geographically inaccessible areas. A total of
690 SAMVAD Units have been constituted at the district level. This has enabled nationwide
institutional coverage of the Scheme through State and District Legal Services Authorities.
With regard to Karnataka, the Karnataka State Legal Services Authority, Bengaluru, has
successfully operationalized the scheme across all 31 districts. As per the NALSA SAMVAD
biennial (half-yearly) data from July 2025 to December 2025, the State has identified diverse tribal
communities, including the Siddi, Yerava, Hakki Pikki, Gond, Jenu Kuruba, Kadu Kuruba, Soliga,
and Koraga. 158 awareness programmes have been conducted, reaching a total of 9680
beneficiaries through localized methods like Nukkad Nataks and door-to-door campaigns. To
2ensure culturally sensitive delivery, 60 panel lawyers have been appointed under the SAMVAD
framework, and 120 Para-Legal Volunteers (PLVs) has been trained and deployed under the
Scheme at the grassroots level.
(d): The Scheme provides a structured monitoring and reporting framework under which quarterly
reports are submitted by Taluk Legal Services Committees, District Legal Services Authorities,
and State Legal Services Authorities in standardized formats prescribed under the Scheme. These
reports are consolidated and reviewed by NALSA at the national level to ensure uniform
implementation and accountability. NALSA has also issued a revised roadmap for consolidated
biennial reports from all State Legal Services Authorities.
The future roadmap includes strengthening data-driven monitoring, capacity building of
SAMVAD Unit functionaries, enhanced outreach in PVTG and DNT dominated regions, and
targeted interventions to address region-specific justice delivery gaps.
(e) : The State-wise details of funds allocated/released along with Maharashtra SLSA is placed as
Annexure-A.
(f) : District-level interventions under the SAMVAD Scheme have been implemented in the Jalgaon
Lok Sabha constituency. As per information provided by the District Legal Services Authority
(DLSA), Jalgaon, the SAMVAD Unit has undertaken coordinated outreach through legal
awareness camps, community needs assessments, and identification of tribal settlements across
talukas, with support from Taluka Legal Services Committees and Para-Legal Volunteers drawn
from tribal communities. The interventions also include facilitation of access to welfare schemes,
appointment of tribal lawyers on legal aid panels, and coordination with concerned government
departments to address basic service delivery gaps.
Periodic reports submitted by District and State Legal Services Authorities are consolidated
and reviewed at the national level by NALSA to ensure uniform implementation, accountability,
and scaling up of the Scheme to address region-specific justice delivery gaps, including in Jalgaon
constituency.
*****
3Annexure-A
Statement referred to in reply to Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No. 2316 for answer on
13/02/2026 regarding ‘SAMVAD Scheme – Access to Justice for Adivasis and
Denotified/Nomadic Tribes.
(Amount in Rupees)
S.No. Name of the State/UT Grants Allocatted & Amount Utilized
Authority Released from National (till 04.02.2026)
Legal Aid Fund
1 Andaman & Nicobar Islands 27,00,000 15,56,383
2 Andhra Pradesh 2,95,00,000 2,31,04,250
3 Arunachal Pradesh 7,60,00,000 4,78,58,028
4 Assam 3,60,00,000 1,80,70,000
5 Bihar 7,25,00,000 5,83,00,000
6 Chandigarh 17,00,000 17,00,000
7 Chhattisgarh 80,00,000 59,40,813
8 Delhi 14,25,00,000 11,44,69,262
9 Goa 8,00,000 38,05,900
10 Gujarat 19,05,00,000 13,04,68,151
11 Himachal Pradesh 2,75,00,000 40,70,525
12 Haryana 6,75,00,000 5,09,83,423
13 Jammu & Kashmir 6,60,00,000 3,61,73,870
14 Jharkhand 12,75,00,000 7,74,86,858
15 Karnataka 8,30,00,000 5,80,65,927
16 Kerala 11,80,00,000 11,14,30,000
17 Ladakh 82,00,000 57,30,000
18 Lakshadweep 20,00,000 7,27,496
19 Maharashtra 2,50,00,000 1,32,71,342
20 Manipur 6,70,00,000 4,20,57,621
21 Mediation and Conciliation 1,00,00,000 41,44,838
Project Committee
22 Meghalaya 3,57,00,000 1,10,99,501
23 Mizoram 7,90,00,000 5,98,61,275
24 Nagaland 2,80,00,000 2,04,98,925
4S.No. Name of the State/UT Grants Allocatted & Amount Utilized
Authority Released from National (till 04.02.2026)
Legal Aid Fund
25 Odisha 3,90,00,000 3,19,30,040
26 Puducherry 30,00,000 29,98,940
27 Punjab 9,00,00,000 4,99,99,834
28 Rajasthan 8,00,00,000 3,42,43,119
29 Sikkim 75,00,000 53,83,673
30 Supreme Court Legal 3,50,00,000 2,54,99,133
Services Committee
31 Tamil Nadu 90,00,000 62,93,778
Telangana 60,00,000 48,96,742
32
33 Tripura 4,00,00,000 3,76,41,662
34 Uttar Pradesh 8,50,00,000 3,89,73,979
35 Uttarakhand 8,50,00,000 6,50,00,000
36 West Bengal 12,00,00,000 10,77,15,199
TOTAL 1,91,14,50,000 1,31,14,50,487
5