Shimla, Sep 15 (FN Agency) Himachal Pradesh Chief minister Jai Ram Thakur hailed the historic decision of Union cabinet to declare the Hatee Community to be included in the ambit of Schedule Tribe adding that schedule castes living in 154 gram panchayat and 389 village wouldn’t be under the ambit of the decision. Addressing a press conference here Thursday Chief minister said 1,59,716 people would benefit from the decision, however, 91,487 people who belonged to schedule caste community would be excluded from the new provision.Chief Minister said four Assembly constituency including Shilai, Pachhad, Poanta Sahib and Renku of Siramaur district would benefit from the provisions. He said 58 gram panchayat including 95 villages of Shilai having around 66775 population ( excluding 30456 SC population), 34 gram panchayat and one nagar panchayat of Pachhad including 141 village having 27261 (excluding 21594 sc population), 18 gram Panchayat and 31 village of Poanta Sahib having 25323 population (excluding 94496SC population) and 44 gram panchayat having 122 villages with population of 40357 (excluding 29990 sc population) are covered in the provision.Chief Minister said government would also consider to provide the status of Schedule Tribe to Jonsar Babar Transgiri area of Uttrakhand soon. He said notification for providing Tribal status for upper caste Tribal Community would be considered soon by completing all modalities.
He said people of Schedule caste and others Community in Sirmaur district were not being covered under the new provision and draft to not include them in the Hatee Community was being sent by the state government. He said people of SC community opposed the new provision as they are against to withdraw the special provisions of protection under SC attrocity act. He said people belonging to SC community not include in the Hatee Community provision of Schedule Tribe as they want to remain in the existing provision of SC Act. He said it was BJP government of Prem Kumar Dhumal and this government who took the issue of Hatee Community and brought it to logical end.Thakur responding to a query said issue of providing Tribal status to Hati community was emotional issue which was considered on the priority by the BJP . He said backward areas of Dodrakwa, Pandrabhish of Shimla district, Kupvai of Chopal, Bada Bengal of Kangra district, Ani and Karsog of Kullu and Mandi district would be brought under similar provision by the state government separately.Thakur said anthropological study of Hatti Community was conducted by BJP government twice which was accepted by the Registrar General of India. He said that during UPA government in 2005 the proposal to include the Hatee Community in the Schedule Tribe was rejected. He said it was after meeting by Chief minister, MP Suresh Kashyap and Baldev Tomar with Union Home Minister Amit Shah and former Union Minister Rajnath Singh that today union cabinet took the decision to approved draft of Hattee Community tribal status on Wednesday.
Thakur also complimented BJP President J P Nadda and Union Minister Anurag Thakur for achieving the break through which would help 1.60 lakh people of Sirmaur district. Thakur said BJP would not decide to grant tribal status to Hati community to allure voters in wake of Assembly Election but the the efforts were being made practically conducting official formalities right from the BJP former government.He also evaded query about the decision of first chief minister Dr YS Parmar to keep the Transgiri area of Himachal Pradesh vis-a-vis to Uttarakhand out of Schedule Tribe. He said Congress party which is trying to negate the efforts made by his government to achieve the provisions in the constitutional demand must accept that small stature people in politics (Chotee Log) like him may succeed like this. He said during his tenure as Chief minister mega projects like Atal Tunnel, Dharmshala rope ways, Drug park were sanctioned and dedicated to the people of the state. He said 1967 Jonsar Babar Transgiri area of Uttrakhand were included in Schedule Tribe list but it took many decades to achieve similar status to Hatee Community which was approved by the Union Çabinet Wednesday. He said like other tribal areas of state government may extend the more funds under special budgetary provision in the 154 Gram Panchayat and 389 villages of for Assembly constituency which covers around 1.59 lakh people in the Sirmour district who are still away from development and cultural disconnected from the state mainstream.He said Register General of India had given the approval to Grant tribal status to Hatee Community on April 2022 . He said government would keep all things in minds including impact of announcement in the areas. Importantly, BJP which considered upper caste Poiltical outfit have also accepted demand of the section of community by Institutions of Swaron Ayog. The state government also implemented provision of reservation to economic weaker sections to the People belonging to upper caste.