Rajya Sabha Passes Two Bills Modifying SC & ST List In Odisha, Andhra Pradesh

New Delhi: Rajya Sabha on Tuesday, passed two bills, which seek to alter the roster of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in Odisha and Andhra Pradesh.

Union Minister Arjun Munda had moved the Constitution (Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes) Orders (Amendment) Bill, 2024, further to amend the Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order, 1950 and the Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order, 1950 to modify the list of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in relation to the state of Odisha and Andhra Pradesh.

The Upper House cleared both the bills unanimously through a voice vote.

The Constitution (Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes) Order (Amendment) Bill, 2024, includes four Particularly Tribal Vulnerable Groups (PVTG) in the Scheduled Tribe list of Odisha. These tribes have been included as synonyms or sub-tribes of communities already listed in the ST category. Furthermore, the bill introduces two new entries — Muka Dora and its synonyms, and Konda Reddy and its synonyms — to the ST list of the state.

This bill also transitions two communities from Odisha, Tamadia and Tamudia, which have been on the SC list for an extended period, to the ST list. Additionally, it incorporates over a dozen synonyms and phonetic variations of existing Scheduled Tribes into the state’s ST list.

The Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order (Amendment) Bill, 2024, on the other hand, includes synonyms for two Scheduled Tribe communities in the Scheduled Tribe list of Andhra Pradesh. Bondo Porja and Khond Porja are added as synonyms for the Porja tribe, and Konda Savara is added as a synonym for the Savara community.