The subject mater of this bill is very interesting in the sense that it deals with certain institutions and institutional arrangements that have got a long history. In this country, there are many institutions, organizations and religious endowments that were created as a result of the prevalence of the caste system and teh organisation of our community on a religious basis. These organizations and institutions were called upon to perform certain functions which we today associate with the welfare state. There was a time, Sir, in the hisotry of our nation when it was these religious organizations and institutions that undertook to discharge certain functions like imparting education to those who were not in a position either to pay for that education or were not in a position to go to the educational institutions for certain family reasons. In order that the bright young men and women could be helped in pursuing their steadiest was found necessary that the religious organizations should step in by giving scholarships to the people belonging to a particular community or to a particular caste and by helping the families of those persons who were thus engaged in educational pursuits during the period that they were so engaged. Similarly, when the poor family were not in a position to make two ends meet, the same religious endowments and other institutions and organizations stepped in to help these families. In this way, a large number of activities were undertaken by these charitable organisations and institutions at a time when the state was not prepared to undertake these responsibilities on its own shoulder. The question that now arises is whether we have reached a stage wherein it is possible for the state to step in and to undertake these very activities so that these religious organisations and institutions might not have to perform those functions.
