RAJYA SABHA NOD TO ADD MORE COMMUNITIES TO ST LIST

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1. The Rajya Sabha on Thursday cleared the way for the inclusion of the Narikoravan and Kurivikkaran hill tribes to the Scheduled Tribes list of Tamil Nadu and the inclusion of the Betta-Kuruba community as a synonym for the already categorised Kadu Kuruba tribe in the ST list of Karnataka, clearing the way for the President to officially accord them ST status.
2. Tribal Affairs Minister Arjun Munda introduced the Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order (Second Amendment) Bill, 2022 and the Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order (Fourth Amendment) Bill, 2022 to modify the ST lists of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka respectively in quick succession, following which both Bills were passed in a voice vote after unanimous support.
3. The Bills, introduced at the beginning of the Winter Session, were passed in the Lok Sabha last week. Now, as per the procedure for inclusion of communities on the ST list, all that remains is for the President to notify the revised ST lists as amended by Parliament, following which the tribal status for these communities will be sealed. 

Opposition’s demand

• During the discussion on the Bills in the Rajya Sabha, several members of the Opposition parties rose to once again reiterate the need for a comprehensive legislation to include all such communities left out of the list for decades now.
• At one point, JD(S) chief H.D. Deve Gowda also rose to speak on the Bill to include Betta-Kuruba in the ST list of Karnataka, saying that there were so many other sub-tribes of the same Kuruba lineage that were awaiting the ST tag for decades and are only getting more desperate for it. “The government must consider these other Kuruba communities as well,” he said.
• Replying to the discussion, Mr. Munda said the point of bringing separate Bills for each of these communities was to establish the intent of the Narendra Modi government and its approach towards some of the most marginalised communities in the country.

SOURCE: THE HINDU, THE ECONOMIC TIMES, PIB