Notwithstanding the Constitutional guarantees and developmental interventions, the goal of bringing the Scheduled Castes (SCs) into the mainstream has proved to be a distant dream. It is turning out to be a daunting challenge especially in the light of ongoing economic changes, as the public actions have further distanced this section from the core economic activities. Unrealistic interventions have compounded the misery among SCs. On the demand side, large-scale landlessness and lack of skills have impeded their economic advancement. This paper examines the scale of deprivation among SCs in the economic and social spheres at the national and state levels. The paper advocates alternative development strategies for SCs under the ‘Comprehensive Development (CD)’ and ‘Integrated Approach (IA)’ framework to empower all segments and to contain the existing levels of social and economic deprivation