Bihar govt recommends inclusion of more castes in ST category

Patna: Bihar government has recommended to the Centre for inclusion of Mallah, Nishad and some other castes in Scheduled Tribes (STs) category so that they could be given benefits of schemes accordingly, launched for upliftment of STs.

Official sources said here that on the directive of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, the state government had sent its recommendations to the Centre for placing some castes including Mallah, Nishad (Bind, Beldar, Choi, Teer, Khulwat, Surahiya, Gorhi, Vanvar, Kewat) and Nonia.

In 2015, state government had sent its recommendations for placing such castes in STs category but the Centre had asked to send recommendations with ethnographic report, sources added.

As per the request of the Centre, Bihar government got prepared ethnographic report on such castes by Anugrah Narain Institute of Social Studies and after that the recommendations to this effect was again sent to Ministry of Tribal Welfares of the Central government.

Courtesy: UNI