Ramaswami: The budgetary numbers over the last couple of years provide the evidence for this explanation. As per the latest periodic labour force survey, 2017-2018, the dalits constitute 19.6 per cent, adivasis 9.3 per cent and OBCs 42.8 per cent of the population. The forward castes (ie, non SC/ST and OBC castes) constitute only 28.2 per cent of the entire population. In keeping with this demographic trend, it is obvious that a substantial allocation should be made for departments and ministries dealing with these sections. However an analysis of the budgetary and revised estimates since 2018-19 (ie, the general election budget) shows that the nodal ministries dealing with these sections have abysmally low allocations. The budgetary allocation of the department of social justice and empowerment (dealing with SC and OBC welfare) was an abysmal 0.045 per cent of the projected GDP and 0.33 per cent of the total expenditure budget. A similar story can be seen in the case of the adivasis where the budgetary allocations for the ministry of tribal affairs are an abysmal 0.032 per cent of the projected GDP and 0.23 per cent of the entire expenditure budget for 2020-2021. The other two ministries dealing with historically vulnerable sections, ie, ministry of minority affairs and ministry of women and child development received a budgetary allocation as percentage of projected GDP that is 0.22 and 0.13 per cent respectively and constitutes 0.17 and 0.98 per cent of the expenditure budget respectively for 2020-2021. It should be further noted that if we look at the cumulative allocations of the four ministries mentioned above, the total money allocated to them is 0.23 per cent of the projected GDP and constitutes only 1.72 per cent of the entire projected expenditure budget. This level of spending does not even match the level of total expenditure for the four ministries in 2018-2019, which was 1.86 per cent of the total expenditure budget. The projected proportional allocations are also 0.06 per cent than the budgetary allocation and 0.02 per cent less than the revised allocation for 2019-2020. In other words, despite the economic distress, there have been targeted cut backs in proportional spending for dalits, adivasis, other vulnerable groups, women and minorities.