Odisha is proud of a large number of tribal communities living on the lap of nature preserving their own customs, traditions and culture but due to the irregularities in the proper identification of some particular communities and providing them the status of Scheduled Tribe (ST), their development has been halted. The Constitution of India has provided some concessions to the tribals for their political, social and economic upliftment. Odisha has made a number of enactments in furtherance of the policies and principles enshrined in the directives but unfortunately there are several communities deprived of their claims as STs.
The ‘Paharia’ tribe of Nuapada, ‘Jhodia’ of Rayagada, ‘Durua’ and ‘Konda Dora’ of Koraput are a few communities fighting their long battle to get ST status. Their demand for the status has not been heard of by the Centre. The Paharias and Duruas are treated as STs in Chhatisgarh. The Konda Dora community living on the border villages of Odisha and Andhra Pradesh are treated as Numka Dora ST community in Andhra Pradesh but in Odisha they are deprived of the status. The Constitution has its Scheduled Tribes order in the year 1950 and revised order in 1965 but the identity of some communities in Odisha having all the characteristics of a tribal group do not number the list of the STs while their counterparts in the neighbouring States of Chhatisgarh and Andhra Pradesh avail all benefits from the Government as STs.
Under an Act of the Parliament, the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Order was amended in the year 1976 and it was an Act to provide for the inclusion in and the exclusion from the lists of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes of certain castes and tribes. In August, 2014, a committee was formed under the chairmanship of Dr Hrushikesh Panda which provided a list to the Government for inclusion of a few communities in ST but the Government has so far remained silent on it. (The Koraput-based writer is a tribal research scholar at the Council of Analytical Studies, Berhampur University)