Min seeks reports on 120 groups for inclusion in ST list.
- Bhubaneswar: Union tribal affairs minister Arjun Munda on Saturday said the state government is yet to submit anthropological reports of 120 communities, who are seeking scheduled tribe (ST) status, delaying the decision-making process.
- On the state government's demand for ST status for more than 160 communities, Muda said here that it is not a political issue, but a constitutional matter. "The move has some processes. ST status will be given to a particular community on the basis of the processes," he added.
- "According to the state government, there were recommendations made in 1979 and 1981 to include these communities in the ST list. But there are no such proper documents with the state government regarding this issue. Even after we asked the state government about the recommendations, they could not provide us documents," he added.
- The union minister said the state can send requests for inclusion of these communities into the ST list after conducting research by using new techniques. "The state government's primary duty is to send the applications with anthropological reports of the communities concerned. But the state has not sent anthropological reports of these 120 communities to the Centre," he clarified.3
- He said the Centre has cleared the file related to 12 communities due to proper documentation and submission of required reports. "We did not get any reports related to another 109 communities. A few requests have been rejected due to lack of proper documents. If the state urges us to include a community into the ST list by supplying a piece of paper, then the whole country will approach us to make them tribals," he added.
- "If you want to find solutions in this matter by giving political statements, you cannot get solutions. The state government must complete the constitutional processes. I request the state government to conduct proper research through tribal research institutes (TRIS) on these communities and send the reports to us. We will take the matter seriously and work on that," the minister said.
- He said the state has two particularly vulnerable tribal groups (PVTGs), but they are not in the ST list. "Though they are PVTGs, astonishingly they are not in the ST list. We will take up their cases,"" he added.