Interim report on ST status to 6 communities of Assam tabled in assembly

    Guwahati, Nov 29 (PTI) An interim report of the Group of Ministers (GoM) over the proposal to grant ST status to six major communities of Assam, was laid in the assembly on the last day of the winter session on Saturday.
    It recommended three-tier classification of Scheduled Tribes in the state over the demand for ST status by the six communities – Ahom, Chutia, Moran, Matak, Koch-Rajbongshi and Tea Tribes (adivasis) – without affecting reservation of the existing tribal groups.
    However, dialogue has to continue with all stakeholders for a “conclusive solution”, it said.
    The House was adjourned sine die at the end of the day's proceedings
    The report, laid by Tribal Affairs (Plains) Minister Ranoj Pegu, who also heads the three-member GoM, recommended the formation of a new category of ‘ST (Valley)', and inclusion of Ahom, Chutia, Tea Tribes, and Kock-Rajbongshi (excluding undivided Goalpara district) in it.
    The state currently has ST (Hills) and ST (Plains) category, besides Scheduled Caste, Other Backward Classes (OBC) and More OBC (MOBC) communities.
    The Parliament will have to enact special legislation to give the three-fold reservation statutory endorsement, the report noted.
    For Moran, Matak and Kock-Rajbongshi (Goalpara), it said they can be included in ‘ST (Plains)', and the existing communities in this category “does not have much opposition”.
    The GoM maintained it has prepared the report to ensure that the political rights and socio-economic and educational interests of existing ST communities are protected.
    The report claimed that the proposed three-tier structure will allow reservation in Parliament, the legislative assembly and local bodies to be reorganised without reducing the current entitlements of ST (P) and ST (H).
    The ST (V) category will have separate reservation quota with distinct rosters and vacancy registers for all state government recruitment and educational institutions, and existing ST quotas will remain protected.
    The Assam government will urge the Centre to provide statutory recognition of the three-tier classification of the STs of Assam.
    This arrangement will be in tune with the resolution of the Assam assembly that the six communities be recognised as STs without effecting the rights and privileges of the present tribal communities.
    ST (V) will be treated as Scheduled Tribes for all purposes, except that it will not affect the rights and privileges enjoyed by the present tribal communities, the report said.
    The GoM maintained that the state as a whole will benefit if the six communities also compete within the common national ST pool in central institutions.
    In another recommendation, it said that two Lok Sabha constituencies in the state covering the Sixth Schedule areas be permanently reserved for the existing STs through a constitutional amendment.
    For ST(V), additional seats will be reserved in Parliament, as the number of reservations will automatically increase in view of the fact that a large number of people will be recognised as ST in the state as per the recommendations of the GoM.
    The GoM has recommended 35 tea garden communites so far not included in the state OBC list be immediately included in that list, enabling their cases to be examined for future ST or SC status.
    The report proposed that till the nod from Parliament is received for inclusion of these six communities in the ST list, the state government should undertake targeted measures to address socio-economic disadvantages faced by these groups.
    It also advocated a comprehensive enumeration and socio-economic survey to enable sub-categorisation within the 27 per cent OBC quota, particularly benefitting the tea garden and adivasi groups.
    This, it said, will ensure equitable distribution of reservation benefits and reduce internal disparities until a unified position emerges regarding their ST demand.
    Limited copies of the report were laid in the House, with only legislative party leaders and the GoMs, among others, getting copies in sealed envelopes.
    The opposition parties demanded discussion on the report, but the Speaker said it can be taken up another time.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)