UTAA demands 12 pc of budget for welfare of STs
HERALD REPORTER
MARGAO, ARPIL 15
UTAA has demanded that the government earmark 12 per cent of the budget to the welfare of the Scheduled Tribes in the state and have called for reservation of seats for the STs in the Municipal polls scheduled later this year.
UTAA president Prakash Velip said that cosmetic financial allocations for the welfare of the STs would not be tolerated by the community and demanded that the government earmark 12 per cent of the total budgetary provision.
Addressing a press conference, Velip made a strong demand for reservation of seats for the ST community in the forthcoming Civic polls. “There is reservation of seats for the STs in Panchayat and Zilla Panchayat bodies, but not in the Municipalities”, he said, while calling upon the government to set the process going to ensure reservations of seats for the ST community.
On the procurement of school buses for the children of Scheduled Tribes by the government, the leaders said since the buses have been purchased under the Tribal fund, the buses should be meant exclusively for the use of the ST students. “We are not happy with the purchase of buses for the ST children. Instead, ST students would have benefited if the government had to pay them a fixed t raveling allowance”, Gaonkar said.
Gaonkar said the tribal communities will have no option than to launch an andolan across the state to secure the just and genuine demands of the ST people. “The government should do a re-think on its policy towards the ST people. All benefits and financial allocations should devolve down to the beneficiaries”, he demanded.
A demand was made to employ both the driver and the helper on the 112 buses belonging to the STs since the vehicles have been procured from the Tribal fund. Moreover, the tribal leaders demanded that the government introduce the buses to the government schools, where a large number of ST students are studying across the state.
Velip also demanded that the government should reserve seats for ST community at the XI science level so that ST students avail benefits of the quota facility for the professional colleges.
The tribal leaders have expressed their dissatisfaction over the progress of the criminal case vis-à-vis the duping of 800 ST community people on the promise of giving a job at the Dabolim airport.
“What we have been asking for is the recovery of the huge amount of Rs eight crore taken from the innocent people. The case is not progressing at a fast pace and no recovery of money is made from the accused persons”, Velip added.
