A delegation of the civil rights organization, Gawad Kunbi Velip & Dhangar Federation (Gakuved federation) has told Dr Nand Kumar Sai, chairperson, and Anusuiya Uikey, vice chairman, of the National commission for Scheduled Tribes (NCST) that the backlog of ST vacancies should be filled up prior to the recruitment of current vacancies in all services in the Government of Goa.
The delegation, which met the visiting NCST office bearers first at the Goa government guest house and then in the ministers' block Secretariat Porvorim, accused the state government of suppressing information about backlog vacancies, "thereby denying constitutionally-mandated reservation provision for STs". It added, the government should start a "special recruitment drive" to fill up the backlog of STs.
The Gakuved federation further asked NCST to ensure that the state government notified the tribal areas in Goa as per the Schedule V of the Constitution of India "to save the tribal identity, tribal culture of Goa and for self-governance."
The delegation, which was led by Rupesh Soiru Velip, general secretary, said, the state government should demarcate tribal areas in the Goa Regional Plan, 2021, constitute tribal advisory council, and ensure stake of the tribal communities for future policy decisions that may affects schedules tribes of Goa.
The state government, it continued, should also ensure implementation of the tribal sub-plan (TSP) at the village level, restore Goa tribal employment generation programme by reviving multipurpose tribal cooperative societies, audit TSP every three years, and identify and declare the community forest resource (CRF) rights under the Forest Rights Act (FRA), 2006, even as creating awareness about CFR provision as enshrined under Section 3(1) (b) to (m) of FRA, 2006.
Asking to safeguard the tribals of Goa and provide necessary protection to young tribal leaders, the delegation sought withdrawal of "false and fabricated cases" registered against the protesting tribals of Goa, especially in the mining region, insisting, the District Mineral Foundation (DMF) fund should be utilised, without fail, for tribal welfare.
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