Two Bills which seek to modify the list of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in Andhra Pradesh and Odisha through inclusion of more communities were passed by the Lok Sabha on Tuesday by a voice vote. The Bills had already been cleared by the Rajya Sabha. Replying to the debate on the Bills, Minister of State for Tribal Affairs Bharti P Pawar said the Modi government has done a lot for the uplift of tribal people. The government has launched schemes such as Pradhan Mantri Janjati Adivasi Nyaya Maha Abhiyan to improve the socio-economic conditions of the Primitive Vulnerable Tribal Groups, she said. In Andhra Pradesh, three ethnic groups — Bondo Porja, Khond Porja and Parangiperja — are being added to the list of STs. In Odisha, it will add four groups in the list. Though the Bills were supported by all parties, the Opposition raised various issues related to tribals. Odisha MP Saptagiri Ulaka of the Congress suggested that such Bills should ideally be brought through a Joint Parliamentary Committee so that right communities can be identified for inclusion in tribal list.U laka picked out the Uniform Civil Code as being detrimental to tribal identity.
