Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Wednesday announced that the state government will form the State Commission for Scheduled Tribe on the lines of National Commission for Scheduled Tribe. The decision was taken in the 51st Maharashtra State Tribes Advisory Council. According to the statement from the Chief Minister‘s Office, judiciary has given its recommendation about the formation of the commission and the rules have been formulated by Tribal Research and Training Institute (TRTI). “The Chief Minister also instructed to not divert the funds meant for the Scheduled Tribes department. One of the issues discussed was the availability of funds. It was instructed that the entire budget of the department is to be released by December end,” the statement said. The meeting of the council was held on the backdrop of simmering tensions within the tribal community in Maharashtra over the demand to accord tribal status to the Dhangar community. Tribal organisations held protests in different parts of the state to oppose any such move. The Bombay high court is presently hearing the case on the issue of ongoing conflict between Dhangar and Scheduled Tribe community with routine hearing set to begin from December. During his tenure as Maharashtra’s Chief Minister, Devendra Fadnavis had appointed Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) to submit a report on tribal status to Dhangars. While the TISS has submitted its report, the government has not made it public. The Dhangar community has been insistent on the release of said report to the public.
