Haryana government today said it has decided to raise the cash reward under the inter-caste marriage scheme from Rs 50,000 to Rs 1 lakh.



This decision was taken at a meeting of the state level Vigilance and Monitoring Committee held here under the chairmanship of the Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar, an official release said.



It was constituted under Rule 16 of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.



The Chief Minister said with the hike in the reward money, the number of inter-caste marriages would go up and help in removing caste discrimination.



He said that such assistance should be provided through bank accounts under the Pradhanmantri Jan-Dhan Yojana.



The department should work on how to make the process the shortest so that financial assistance can be provided to the beneficiaries without any delay, he said.



Reviewing the implementation of provisions of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribe (POA) Act, the Chief Minister said the meetings of district level vigilance and monitoring committees should be held on schedule, and directions in this regard should be issued to Deputy Commissioners.



In case of any type of atrocity, compensation should be given to the victim at first stage without any delay, and prompt action should be taken after case is registered.



The Chief Minister also directed officers of the Police Department to ensure wide publicity of 'HARSAMAY', a citizen portal of the Haryana Police, where anyone can register a complaint any time.



In addition, zero FIR system should also be publicised which enables anybody to lodge an FIR at any police station irrespective of jurisdiction.



Khattar also asked officials of the Welfare of Scheduled Castes and Backward Classes Department to prepare schemes for ameliorating the status of people belonging to weaker sections of the society by way of education, scholarships, skill development etc.



Finance Minister Abhimanyu suggested that online system be introduced for submission of applications to the department to ensure total transparency.