ST and SC communities increased considerably: Govt

New Delhi, Aug 11 (UNI) The Government today said the number of Scheduled Tribes communities went up to 706 from 244 and Scheduled Castes communities from 1200 odd to 1938 till now.

Intervening in the resumed discussion on the Constitution (Amendment) Bill, 2004 (Amendment of articles 341 and 342), Minister for Social Justice Meira Kumar said the government has taken up the matter of granting of SC/ST status to communities of tea garden and ex-tea garden tribes.

The modalities of granting status to them is nearing completion, she said. She said the formalities include the state to send recommendations to the Tribal Affairs Ministry with ethnographic details and then it goes to the National Commission for SC/ST and to the Cabinet, and finally to Parliament for amendments.

The criterion for granting ST status to a community is that it has to show primitive traits and be geographically isolated whereas the parameters for SC status is its extreme socio- economic backwardness.

The Minister will resume her talk on August 25.

Earlier, in the private members discussion, Independent member Urkhao Gwra Brahma from Asom said the condition of Adivasis is pitiable in the state and the condition of the SCs appalling.

Congress member Sushila Tirya wanted the long-standing bill to be considered.

BJP member Vijay Rupani said there were many cases where people were volunteering to become SC/ST to get benefits.

Promilla Bodhidhar, BJD, said Orissa has many SC/STs and the government should help redress their conditions.

Eds: Pls pick up suitably from earlier series.

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