Constitution amendment omits two communities from Odisha's Scheduled Castes list

It aims to include certain communities, add synonyms for existing groups, and move two specific communities from the Scheduled Castes list to the Scheduled Tribes list.

Who it concerns: The Bill affects individuals belonging to the specific communities listed in the amendments within the State of Odisha, including those being added to the Scheduled Tribes list, those having synonyms added to their entries, and the two communities (Tamdia and Tamudia) being moved from the Scheduled Castes list to the Scheduled Tribes list.

What the bill does

• Omits entries 87 (Tamdia) and 88 (Tamudia) from the Scheduled Castes Order for Odisha.
• Substitutes 'Orissa' with 'Odisha' in the header of the Scheduled Tribes Order.
• Adds 'Pauri Bhuyan' and 'Paudi Bhuyan' as synonyms to entry 6 (Bhuiya, Bhuyan).
• Adds 'Tamodia Bhumij', 'Tamudia Bhumij', 'Tamundia Bhumij', 'Tamulia Bhumij', 'Tamdia Bhumij', 'Tamdia', 'Tamaria', and 'Tamudia' to entry 8 (Bhumij).
• Adds 'Chuktia Bhunjia' to entry 9 (Bhunjia).
• Adds 'Banda Paraja', 'Bonda Paraja', 'Bondo', 'Bonda', and 'Banda' to entry 13 (Bondo Poraja, Bonda Paroja, Banda Paroja).
• Adds 'Durua', 'Dhurua', and 'Dhurava' to entry 17 (Dharua, Dhuruba, Dhurva).
• Adds 'Kaur', 'Kunwar', 'Kaonr', 'Kuanr', 'Konwar', 'Kuanar', 'Kaanr', 'Koanr', and 'Kuanwar' to entry 28 (Kawar, Kanwar).
• Adds 'Kandha Kumbhar', 'Kui (Kandha)', and other variants to entry 31 (Khond, Kond, Kandha, etc.).
• Adds 'Mankidia' to entry 47 (Mankirdia, Mankria, Mankidi).
• Adds 'Uram', 'Oram', 'Uraon', 'Dhangara', and 'Oraon Mudi' to entry 53 (Oraon, Dhangar, Uran).
• Adds 'Bareng Jhodia Paroja', 'Penga Paroja', 'Pengu Paroja', 'Porja', and 'Selia Paroja' to entry 55 (Paroja, etc.).
• Adds 'Rajual' and 'Rajuad' to entry 57 (Rajuar).
• Adds 'Saara' to entry 59 (Vesu Saora, etc.).
• Inserts new entry 63: 'Muka Dora, Mooka Dora, Nuka Dora, Nooka Dora' restricted to undivided Koraput district (including Koraput, Nowrangapur, Rayagada, and Malkangiri districts).
• Inserts new entry 64: 'Konda Reddy, Konda Reddi'.

Also in the document

• This is a Constitutional amendment Bill.
• The changes are based on recommendations from the State Government of Odisha.
• The Bill was introduced in the Rajya Sabha on 5th February, 2024.
• The Financial Memorandum states that the amendment may entail additional expenditure for welfare schemes, but the amount cannot be estimated at this stage.