Govt renews efforts to change caste names

The Delhi Cabinet had earlier decided to amend the nomenclature,which the Union government denied stating that only Parliament had the power to do so.

Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit on Tuesday said,“The Cabinet had decided on July 25,2011,to amend the nomenclature by substituting Balmiki for Bhangi and Chura,Jatav or Ravidas in place of Chamar and Giarah in place of Kanjar.” She added that the same was forwarded to the Centre for its assent,which was denied as only Parliament has the power to amend the nomenclature.

“We will still pursue the matter with the Central government and are keen on abandoning the use of derogatory nomenclature,” Dikshit said.

For the time being,the Cabinet decided to restore the original nomenclature to ensure that beneficiaries would continue to get their due. “The original nomenclature has been restored so that all beneficiaries will continue to avail benefits under various schemes,appointments and admissions,” Dikshit said.

The Delhi Cabinet on Tuesday also decided to increase the ambit of the government’s flagship Dilli Annshree Yojana and extend benefits under the scheme to widows. The scheme was launched on December 15,2012,and aims to provide Rs 600 per month to Aadhaar-enabled bank accounts of the senior-most woman member of the most vulnerable families not covered under the public distribution system. “All widows enrolled for the scheme will get benefits with effect from April 1,2013,” a senior official said.