Kolkata: Central Kolkata, the stretch between Howrah Station and Tea Board and later RR Avenue, witnessed slow traffic following 3 political rallies by Adivasis who marched to the centre of the city to place their demands.
The United Forum of All Adibasi Organisations demanded on Tuesday that non-tribal communities like Kudmis should not be granted Scheduled Tribe status. The Kudmis in West Bengal have for long been demanding ST status—a recognition they claim they lost after independence. They also demanded inclusion of the Kurmali language in the Eighth Schedule. Nearly 8,000 members of the various tribal organisations gathered at the Rani Rashmani Road rally.
Traffic on Howrah Bridge was shut for 30 minutes to allow the marchers to come from the station to RR Avenue via Brabourne Road. In the heart of central Kolkata, traffic moved slowly from Mayo Road for at least 2 hours. Among the worst-affected roads were Howrah Bridge, Strand Road, Brabourne Road, and Esplanade Crossing.
Representatives of tribal organisations claimed that none of the non-tribal communities should be granted ST status. Mitan Tudu, working president of the UFAAO, said, "You saw how the tribals in Jharkhand took to the streets. There is an attempt by non-tribal organisations to be given ST status, and we opposed that. We also demanded that tribal languages like Koda, Mahali, Munda, Ho, and Sadari should be included in the Eighth Schedule." The organisation's convenor, Ramdas Kisku, said, "There are people from non-tribal castes who are falsely getting ST certificates issued in their names. We demanded an enquiry commission into this. We also want The Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006, has to be implemented," Kisku said.