CPI-M blames UPA for tribals' plight

The CPI-M Sunday accused the UPA central government of favouring the corporate sector and held it responsible for tribals becoming landless and increasingly dependent on daily-wage labour.

"In the name of setting up power projects, industries and irrigation schemes, lakhs of tribals are being evicted from their traditional lands. In most cases, no settlements were given to these deprived tribals," CPI-M politburo member Brinda Karat said here.

Karat and other CPI-M leaders arrived at Tripura's capital Agartala Saturday to attend a two-day central committee meeting of the Adivasi Adhikar Rashtriya Manch (AARM).

The AARM, headed by tribal leader Bajuban Riang, also CPI-M MP and central committee member, was formed in 2010 to highlight the cause and rights of the 10 crore tribals in the country.

Tribal leaders from Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Assam, Maharashtra, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, West Bengal, Odisha and Tripura attended the meeting.

Karat said over 32 lakh applications by tribals had been submitted across the country to get land deeds and land rights under the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006. "Of the 32 lakh claims, 15,80,000 applications have been rejected."

"The government is depriving tribals from getting their lands. Acts must be amended so that Scheduled Castes living in forests for decades can get back their lands," the CPI-M leader said.

Demanding the formation of a central commission to look into the reservation criteria of tribals, Karat said some groups have been wrongly included in the Scheduled Tribes category and some genuine tribal communities have been excluded.

"Many tribals have been arrested on the charge that they are Maoists," the CPI-M politburo member said. She added that AARM would launch an all-India movement to force the government to resolve the tribals' problems.