New Delhi: The Delhi government is mulling merging the Department of Social Welfare and the Department of Welfare of SC/ST into a single department – the Department of Social Justice and Empowerment – to bring uniformity in functioning and reduce bureaucratic hassles, an official said on Friday.The charge of both the departments is held by Ravinder Singh Indraj (HT)The proposal is being discussed considering the fact that even the Central government has one ministry–Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment– which is framing policies for the marginalised communities, the official said, adding the Centre also has the Ministry of Tribal Affairs for socio-economic development of Scheduled Tribes (ST).“In Delhi, there is no notified list of STs. The government is considering merging the two departments to bring uniformity in functioning and reduce bureaucratic hassles. In fact, Delhi has the distinction of having a separate SC/ST department,” the official said.The charge of both departments is held by Ravinder Singh Indraj. Established in 1959, the Department of Social Welfare provides welfare programmes and services to persons with disabilities and social security for the aged and the destitute through a network of residential care homes and non-institutional services. The Department of Welfare of SC/STs is responsible for the socio-economic and educational advancement of marginalised communities.