Overall development of Scheduled Caste, Scheduled Tribes and Other Backward Classes is the top priority of the State Government, claimed Chief minister Raman Singh here on Friday.
The chief minister was addressing a delegation of State Backward Classes Welfare Manch here on Friday. On the occasion, the delegation expressed its gratitude towards the chief minister for his recent decision taken in the interest of backward classes.
Recently Singh had taken decisions to increase the number of seats in coaching classes for the preparation of backward class students for different competitive examinations, to establish hostels furnished with all facilities at district level and to give sufficient seats to the girls and boys of backward classes and to include villages and wards of urban bodies coming under the Bastar and Sarguja Tribal Development Authority districts that have more than 50 per cent backward class population in the State Rural Development Authority.
Besides, the chief minister had decided to write a letter to the Union government to cancel the clause that compelling the backward class families to submit 75 years’ records for getting forest rights recognition letters and to make it for
10 years.
The chief minister said, in order to prevent violation of the Scheduled Caste Scheduled Tribe Atrocities Prevention Act, the state police would be given necessary instructions. Dr Singh has also decided to set up a high-level committee to look into the other demands of the backward classes.
The delegation comprises state representatives of Backward Classes Welfare Manch Jagannath Sahu, Dayaram Sahu, president of Kanker district branch of the Manch Parmanand Sahu, chairperson of the Manch’s Mahila Morcha (Kanker) Dikeshwari Sinha, president of Charama block Bhojram Sinha, president of Kondagaon district branch Dilip Diwan, president of Kanker block branch Ishwar Sahu, Rani Sinha, Gaurishankar Sahu, Jitendra Jaiswal, Neelkhand Sardul and representatives from other areas.
Chairman of Chhattisgarh State Cooperative Bank (Markfed) Radhakrishna Gupta and chairman of State Cooperative Bank Mahavir Singh Rathore were also present with the delegation.