The Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on Wednesday, September 14 approved the proposal to add the Narikuravars, one of the most deprived and vulnerable communities living in the hills of Tamil Nadu, to the ST (Scheduled Tribe) list, Union Tribal Affairs Minister Arjun Munda said. The Cabinet approved the ministry's proposal for the inclusion of Narikuravars, along with the Kuruvikkaran community of Tamil Nadu under ST category through the introduction of a Bill in Parliament to amend the Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order, 1950.
In March this year, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin had written a letter urging Prime Minister Narendra Modi to intervene and expedite the inclusion of Narikuravar (also known as Narikoravan) and Kuruvikkaran communities in the list of Scheduled Tribes. Pointing out the reason for seeking the inclusion of these communities in the ST list, the CM had noted that Narikuravars are one of the most deprived and vulnerable communities in Tamil Nadu and therefore, deserve all the constitutional protection and welfare measures offered under the list.
"Though this has been the case and several representations have been made in this regard, the inclusion of this community in the list is pending for a very long time. Therefore, I request you to kindly intervene in this matter to expeditiously include Narikoravan / Kuruvikkaran communities in the list of Scheduled Tribes in the State of Tamil Nadu,” he said.
The Narikoravan community of Tamil Nadu had earlier been in the Most Backward Classes list, and has already been included in the ST list in states such as Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh.
Besides Tamil Nadu, the Union Cabinet cleared the proposal to notify several tribal communities under the Scheduled Tribes (ST) category in Chhattisgarh, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, and Uttar Pradesh as well. Munda told media persons after the Cabinet meeting that these proposals were lying pending for several years. Basically due to spelling errors and similar sounding names of several communities, these could not be brought under the ST category for a very long time, he added.
The Cabinet also approved a proposal to add the Hatti community in the Trans-Giri area of Himachal Pradesh's Sirmaur to the list of notified Scheduled Tribes, the Union Minister said. At a media briefing after the Cabinet meeting, Munda, who is the Union tribal affairs minister, said the move will benefit around 1.60 lakh people of the Hatti community. A proposal to add the Brijia community to the ST list in Chhattisgarh has also been approved, Munda said.
With agency inputs