Delhi convention seeks higher ST reservation, forest-rights reviews

Delegates at Mavalankar Hall on Rafi Marg adopted a charter of demands on Scheduled Tribe rights, covering reservation, forest land claims, schooling and language.

The Left-affiliated Adivasi Adhikar Rashtriya Manch said Scheduled Tribe reservation should rise from 7.5% to match the community’s population share recorded in the 2027 Census. The group cited the 2011 Census, which put India’s ST population at 8.6%.

The charter also called for reservation in the private sector, filling backlog vacancies and publishing employment and reservation data across government entities.

AARM said religion should not be used as a criterion for ST classification. Its vice-president, Brinda Karat, said criteria set by the 1965 Lokur Committee, including isolation and “shyness of contact”, had become obsolete and should be reviewed.

The group sought a time-bound review of rejected claims under the Forest Rights Act, stronger gram sabhas and a freeze on forest evictions. It also called for higher education spending in Adivasi regions, cooked midday meals with eggs in school menus, larger scholarships and teaching in mother tongues.