The Department of National Integration was formed in 1968 as per the recommendation made by the Standing Committee of the National Integration Council in its first meeting held in Delhi on 26 November 1968. The schemes of the Department of National Integration are long term and continuous efforts. The schemes/programmes of the department awaken the spirit of national unity, communal harmony and social harmony in the minds of the people. The important schemes of the department are organised once a year on their fixed dates or various programmes are organised as per the decisions taken by the government from time to time. At present the following schemes/programmes are being run under the Department of National Integration:
1- The birth anniversary of Iron Man Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel is celebrated every year on 31st October as "National Integration Day". In this regard, in the Government Order of the Department dated 5th May 2001, an amount of Rs. 5000/- has been sanctioned to each district. For the upcoming financial year 2025-26, the current popular government has increased the amount from Rs. 5 thousand to Rs. 50 thousand per district (except Lucknow) in the questioned item and a budgetary provision of Rs. 5 lakh i.e. a total provision of Rs. 42 lakh has been made for organizing the questioned program through the District Magistrate Lucknow at the headquarters Lucknow. As per the instructions issued by the Government of India, instructions have been made to take the following oath regarding national unity in all the organized programs:-
Shapath
"I solemnly swear that I will dedicate myself to maintaining the unity, integrity and security of the nation and will also make every effort to spread this message among my countrymen. I am taking this oath in the spirit of unity of my country which was made possible by the vision and work of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. I also solemnly pledge to contribute to ensure the internal security of my country"
2- An amount of Rs. 35,000/- is sanctioned to each district by Government Order dated 27 March 2003 for organizing various programs on the birth anniversary of Baba Saheb Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar. As before, a budget provision of Rs. 26.25 lakh is being made in this item in every financial year.
3- Funds are sanctioned for celebrating the birthdays of such known and unknown great men of the districts of the state who have made a significant contribution in developing the feelings of brotherhood in the local society and strengthening the environment of mutual harmony among different communities. An amount of Rs. 26,25,000 is being arranged in this item every financial year. An amount of Rs. 35000 is allocated to each district under this scheme.
4- Any great person residing in the state, who has done excellent work in the field of protection of human rights, social justice and national integration and has been continuously engaged in this direction, is identified by the government and with the aim of publicly honoring him in the form of Guru Govind Singh Rashtriya Ekta Puraskar, on the occasion of Guru Govind Singh's birthday on January 5, the state government awards a cash prize of Rs. 1 lakh and a citation. This scheme has been started by the state government from the year 2001. In this item also, as before, a budget provision of Rs. 2.00 lakh is being made in every financial year.
5- Every year from 19 to 25 November, National Unity Week is celebrated on the directions of the Government of India. In this regard, an amount of Rs. 5,000/- is sanctioned to each district of the state in the government order of the department dated 13 November 2013. In this item also, a budget provision of Rs. 3,75,000 is being made in every financial year. For this, the date wise program of celebrating 'National Unity Week' is as follows:-
November 19: National Integrity Day
Meetings, symposia and seminars should be organised to give importance to issues related to secularism, anti-communalism and non-violence.
20 November: Minority Welfare Day
Emphasis should be laid on the Prime Minister's 15-point program for minorities. Special processions should be taken out to promote brotherhood in riot-prone cities.
21 November: Linguistic Harmony Day
Special literary festivals and kavi sammelans should be organized so that people from each region in India can understand each other's linguistic heritage.
22 November: Weaker Sections Day
Meetings and rallies should be organised to publicise the schemes for helping the SC/STs and other weaker sections under various Government programmes and to insist on allotment of additional land to landless labourers.
23 November: Cultural Unity Day
Organising cultural festivals to showcase the Indian tradition of 'unity in diversity' and to promote cultural preservation and integrity.
November 24: Women's Day
The importance of women in Indian society and their role in nation building should be highlighted.
25 November : Protection Wall
Organise meetings and events to highlight the need to raise awareness about protecting the environment.
6- District Integration Committee has been formed with the objective of maintaining brotherhood, communal unity and harmonious environment. These committees make arrangements for celebrating major festivals and celebrations like Raksha Bandhan, Holi, Diwali, Eid-Bakrid, Christmas Day and Basant Panchami collectively and on these occasions invite and honour freedom fighters and such persons who have saved the lives of members of other communities by putting their lives in danger for prevention and control of communal riots and those who have been rewarded under Inter-religious Marriage Promotion Scheme so that other people of the society can take inspiration from them. A budget provision of Rs. 15,00,000 is being made in this item in every financial year.
7- Maulana Azad Memorial Academy, Lucknow, a non-governmental voluntary organization, was initially given an annual grant of Rs. 3 lakhs, which has been increased to Rs. 15,00,000 in the financial year 2014-15, with the objective of translating Urdu books and journals written by Maulana Abul Kalam Azad and others in other languages and making them available to the libraries and reading rooms of the country.
8- "Uttar Pradesh Inter-religious Marriage Promotion Rules for Inter-religious Marriage, 1976" is applicable, under which such married couples, who were followers of different religions before marriage, are placed in the category of inter-religious marriage. Such couples are given a cash prize of Rs 50,000/-, a citation and a medal as an incentive and relevant proposals are received by the government through the District Magistrate/Divisional Commissioners.
9- State Integration Council has been constituted under the National Integration Department. The Hon'ble Chief Minister is its ex-officio Chairman and the Departmental Minister is nominated as the ex-officio Vice Chairman.
