A delegation of Putiya Samaj of undivided Koraput district has submitted a memorandum to Union Tribal Affairs Minister Jual Oram in New Delhi demanding re-inclusion of Putiya (Dulia or Dhulia) in the Scheduled Tribe (ST) list.
The delegation was led by Sankar Prasad Duria, who apprised the Union Minister of the pitiable conditions of the Putiya community in the undivided Koraput district.
He said, “The Putiyas had been recognised as tribals by the Union Government till 2002. All of a sudden, they were omitted from the ST lists of Odisha in the Gazette of India 2003.” He further alleged that Putiyas as sub-tribe of Kotia (ST) in caste hierarchy have not figured in the STs, SCs, OBCs or SEBCs list of Odisha since 2003. As a result of which over 20,000 Putiya people living in the undivided Koraput district are deprived of getting any benefits in terms of reservation, education, health, livelihood and employment, he added.
Duria said several representations have been made to the State Government for inclusion of the community in the ST list for the last seven years. Notably, the State Government on September 19 last year had recommended the Centre to include the Putiyas in the ST list.
