The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved the Home Ministry’s proposal to replace the generic term ‘any Naga tribes’ with the specific names of the tribes that will qualify for recognition as Scheduled Tribes (ST) in Arunachal Pradesh. “The proposal to replace ‘any Naga Tribes’ with the specific names of Tutsa, Wancho, Nocte and Tangsawas was cleared by the Tribal Affairs Ministry first,” said a senior official.
Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said the Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order (Amendment) Bill, 2018, for revision of the list of the Scheduled Tribes of Arunachal Pradesh, was cleared, and the names of some communities would be deleted. An official statement said ‘Khampti’ would be replaced with ‘Tai Khamti’ in the list. ‘Abor’ would be deleted and ‘Mishmi-Kaman, Idu and Taraon’ would be included. ‘Monpa, Memba, Sartang, Sajolong’ would be included in lieu of ‘Momba’ in the list of the Scheduled Tribes of Arunachal Pradesh.
The winter session of Parliament, technically the last for the NDA government, comes to an end on January 8. The Home Ministry will have to move the Bill in Parliament before the winter session concludes on January 8 for the changes to come into effect.
