The Process of Inclusion or Exclusion from the Scheduled Tribes List 

Probable Question

 Explain the procedure and criteria to be followed to include any particular community in the Scheduled Tribes list.

Context

Recently, the Union Cabinet has given consent to add several tribes to the list of Scheduled Tribes (ST) in States such as Himachal Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Chhattisgarh, and Uttar Pradesh.

About the Inclusion in the Scheduled Tribes list

• Communities approved for Inclusion:
  • The Hatti tribe in the Trans-Giri area of Sirmour district in Himachal Pradesh, 
  • The hill tribes of Narikoravan and Kurivikkaran of Tamil Nadu, 
  • The Binjhia community in Chhattisgarh,
  • The Gond community in certain districts of Uttar Pradesh
• The addition of several alternative names for already existing Scheduled Tribes in Chhattisgarh and Karnataka by the Cabinet, so that members of these communities wouldn’t be left out of the benefits meant for them.

Procedure to Add or Remove from SC & ST lists

• At the State or Union Territory level, the concerned government or administration seeking the addition or exclusion of a particular community from the SC or ST list, forward the proposal to the Union Ministry of Tribal Affairs.
• The Ministry of Tribal Affairs, through its own deliberations, examines the proposal and sends it to the Registrar General of India (RGI).
• The RGI sent the proposal to the National Commission for Scheduled Castes or National Commission for Scheduled Tribes, after approval.
• Then the proposal is sent back to the Union government, which after inter-ministerial deliberations, introduces it to the Cabinet for final approval.
• Articles 341 and 342 of the Constitution: It gives power to the President's office for the final decision. 
• The President assents to a Bill that amends the Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order, 1950, and the Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order, 1950 after it is passed by both the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha.

Read yesterday’s edition of Current Affairs on Centre's Ramakrishna Mission ‘Awakening’ Programme, in case you missed reading it.

Criteria to Establish Whether a Community is a Scheduled Tribe

The government looks at the following criteria, to establish whether a community is a Scheduled Tribe:

• Ethnological traits
• Traditional characteristics
• Distinctive culture
• Geographical isolation
• Backwardness

Also Read: Tribal contribution to the Freedom Struggle of India

Official Scheduled Tribes of India

As per the 2011 census, the following is the status of the Scheduled tribe in the country:

• There are said to be 705 ethnic groups listed as Scheduled Tribes under Article 342. 
• Over 10 crore Indians are notified as STs, of which 1.04 crore live in urban areas. 
• The STs constitute 8.6% of the population and 11.3% of the rural population.

News Source: 

https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/explained-the-process-of-inclusion-or-exclusion-from-the-scheduled-tribes-list/article65906246.ece

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