Various Awards to Individuals/Organizations who have made Outstanding Contributions in the Field of Social Welfare

What is the social welfare awards scheme in Gujarat?

Gujarat's awards for outstanding contribution in the field of social welfare are run by the Directorate of Scheduled Caste Welfare, under the Social Justice and Empowerment Department, and appear on the directorate's own scheme list as BCK-30. The scheme is not one award but a family of seven recognitions, some open on the strength of social welfare work alone and some reserved for Scheduled Caste writers, journalists and women artisans.

The purpose is straightforward. Gujarat wants the people and institutions that have actually done the work of social upliftment: running homes and schools, writing the literature of the community, reporting on it, keeping crafts alive, to be named publicly and paid a substantial cash honour rather than a token one. At Rs 2,00,000, the top two awards are among the larger state social welfare honours in India.

What are the awards and how much do they carry?

According to the Directorate of Scheduled Caste Welfare, the pattern of assistance under BCK-30 is:

Note one wrinkle in the directorate's own listing: the Savitribai Phule award is described as Rs 1,00,000 in the eligibility table and as a Rs 50,000 cash award in the pattern-of-assistance summary on the same page. Confirm the current figure with the directorate before relying on it.

Who is eligible, and who is not eligible?

An applicant or nominee can be considered if:

• The person has made a significant contribution to social welfare work. The stated test for the Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Award.
• The applicant is a registered organisation with significant contribution to social welfare work, for the Mahatma Gandhi Award.
• The applicant is a Scheduled Caste litterateur with creative work in Dalit literature, for the Sant Shri Kabir award, or an outstanding literary work, for the Dasi Jivan award.
• The applicant is an outstanding Scheduled Caste journalist, for the Mahatma Phule award.
• The applicant is a Scheduled Caste woman who has contributed to the development of Scheduled Caste people through handicraft skills, for the Savitribai Phule award.
• The applicant is a Scheduled Caste litterateur publishing a work relating to Dalit problems, for publication assistance of up to Rs 10,000.

An applicant is not eligible if:

• The claim rests on intention or position rather than demonstrated work. Every award in this group turns on contribution already made and capable of being evidenced.
• The applicant is not from a Scheduled Caste and is applying for the Sant Shri Kabir, Mahatma Phule, Dasi Jivan or Savitribai Phule award, or for publication assistance, those five are reserved.
• An individual applies for the Mahatma Gandhi Award, which is an institutional award, or an organisation applies for the Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Award, which is individual.
• The application is filed outside the year's announced window or on the wrong form.

This is a recognition scheme, not an entitlement. Meeting the description does not create a right to the award; a selection process decides among the nominations received in a given year.

What documents are required?

How to apply for a Gujarat social welfare award

1. Decide which award fits. Read the seven descriptions above and pick the one that matches the work — social welfare service, Dalit literature, journalism, handicraft, or publication of a book.
2. Download the prescribed form for that award. The Directorate of Scheduled Caste Welfare hosts separate application forms, including a form for the Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Award for social welfare contribution and a form for the Dasi Jivan award for creative Dalit literary work, in the Forms section of its website.
3. Assemble the evidence. Write a factual account of the work with dates, places and results, and attach publications, press coverage, photographs, certificates and testimonials. For an organisation, add the registration certificate and audited accounts.
4. Attach the caste certificate where the award is reserved for Scheduled Caste applicants, along with Aadhaar and a bank passbook copy.
5. Submit the complete application at the district social welfare office. The District Deputy Director (Scheduled Caste Welfare) or Social Welfare Officer; or directly to the Directorate of Scheduled Caste Welfare at Gandhinagar, and take a dated inward acknowledgement.
6. Keep a full copy of everything submitted, since original publications and certificates are not always returned quickly.

How do you check the status of a nomination?

Quote your inward number at the office where the nomination was filed. The directorate publishes announcements in its News section and puts scheme forms in the Forms section, and the state office can be reached at +91 79 23253229 / 23253235. Since selection is annual, a nomination filed after a year's list has closed will usually be held for the next cycle rather than rejected: ask explicitly which year your file is being considered for.

Why are nominations turned down, and how do you strengthen them?

• Assertion without evidence. "Long service to society" without documents does not survive scrutiny. Attach dated proof.
• Wrong award chosen. A journalist's portfolio filed for the Sant Shri Kabir literature award will not be transferred automatically. Match the work to the award.
• Missing caste certificate for one of the five reserved awards.
• Organisation papers incomplete. A Mahatma Gandhi Award nomination without registration and accounts cannot be assessed.
• Late filing. The window is notified annually; a nomination that arrives after the committee has met waits a full year.

Where do you complain or ask for help?

Write to the Directorate of Scheduled Caste Welfare, Block 4, 2nd Floor, Dr Jivraj Mehta Bhavan, Gandhinagar, telephone +91 79 23253229, quoting the inward number of your nomination. The parent department is the Social Justice and Empowerment Department, Block 5, 8th Floor, Sachivalaya, Gandhinagar.

Gujarat runs other recognitions in the same space that an applicant may qualify for, including the Nalanda Award and the Pujya Ravishankar Maharaj Award listed by the Directorate of Developing Castes Welfare, and the state's Gaurav Puraskar for artists given by the Gujarat State Sangeet Natak Academy. If your work is in art rather than social service, those are the better route.