Context: The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has recently emphasized the urgent need to adopt and implement the recommendations of the Idate Commission report.

Key highlights from NHRC's Recent Focus

• NHRC calls for setting up a permanent commission for Nomadic, Semi-Nomadic, and De-Notified Tribes (NTs, SNTs, and DNTs), as recommended by the Idate Commission.

• The NHRC recognizes the challenges faced by these people due to historical stigma, primarily from the Criminal Tribes Act, 1872, and Habitual Offenders Act, 1952.

• Habitual Offenders Act, 1952: The act can either be repealed or a representative from the De-notified Tribe community shall be included with the nodal officers.

• The Habitual Offenders Act defines a habitual offender as someone who has been convicted and sentenced to imprisonment more than twice in five years.

• There is a necessity to change the colonial mindset that labels De-Notified Tribes as having “criminal tendencies.”

• The documentation process for these communities must be boosted to ensure they receive welfare scheme benefits.

• Issues like the lack of citizenship documents among De-Notified communities must be discussed.

• NHRC suggests measures to overcome the difficulties faced by these communities, including ensuring their representation in parliament, government institutions, and higher education.

• Special attention to the women and children of these tribes, must be highlighted citing their unique challenges and needs.

Challenges faced by NTs, SNTs, and DNTs

• Lack of Recognition and Documentation: Denotified communities lacking citizenship documents, which makes their identity invisible and causes hindrances in obtaining government benefits, constitutional, and citizenship rights.

• Limited Political Representation: Inadequate representation for these communities making it challenging for them to voice their concerns and advocate for their rights.

• Social Stigma and Discrimination: NTs, SNTs, and DNTs often face discrimination and social stigma, both due to their historical denotified status and their distinct way of life.

• Economic Marginalization: Lack of access to resources, markets, and employment opportunities results in economic marginalization of these communities.

• Educational Deprivation: Educational opportunities for these tribes are limited, leading to high illiteracy rates.

About Idate Commission Report

• The commission was established in 2015 to promote the planned development of NTs, SNTs, and DNTs, with Bhiku Ramji Idate as the chairperson.

• It recognized these communities as the 'poorest among the poor' and unanimously stressed on specific programs for their development.

• It is outlined in the interim report for education, housing, infrastructure, health facilities, microfinance, and skill development.

Key Recommendations

• Establishment of a Permanent Commission: This would include community leaders, IAS officers, and subject experts to address ongoing issues and provide consistent support.

• Separate Department/Directorate: For each state to ensure effective administration and coordination for the development of these people.

• Census and Proactive Data Collection: It emphasized conducting a detailed census for accurate data on their population for policy formulation.

• Strong safeguards: It asked for constitutional protections like extension of the Protection of Atrocities Act to these communities.

• Representation: It proposed that due representation in Political Bodies would ensure partnership in the decision-making process.

• Sub-Quota: A sub-quota or a separate category within existing quotas could address the non-representation issues in education, employment, and other spheres.

• Removal of Anomalies: In order to address categorization anomalies and rationalize classifications based on ethnographic studies and due procedures.

About De-notified Tribes in India

• The term 'De-notified Tribes' stands for all those communities that were once notified under the Criminal Tribes Acts, enforced by the British Raj between 1871-1947.

• These Acts were repealed in 1952, and these communities were "De-Notified".

• The terms- nomads and semi-nomads are applied to 'social groups who undertook frequent, or seasonal physical movement as part of their livelihood strategy in the recent past.

• The term semi-nomad is mostly used to describe those sections of nomads whose duration, distance, and frequency of movement are comparatively less than others.

Steps Taken by Government

• Based on the recommendations of the Idate Commission the Government of India constituted the Development and Welfare Board for DNTs, SNTs &NTs (DWBDNCs) in 2019. 

• A committee has also been set up by the NITI Aayog to complete the process of identification of the De-Notified, Nomadic and Semi-Nomadic Communities (DNCs).

• Scheme for Economic Empowerment of DNTs (SEED): The scheme was launched in 2022 for the welfare of Denotified, Nomadic and Semi Nomadic Communities.

• Budget: The Ministry has been allocated Rs. 200 crore for this scheme to be spent over five financial years from 2021-22 to 2025-26. 

• Components: The four components of the Scheme for Economic Empowerment of DNTs are;

• To provide good quality coaching for DNT candidates to enable them to appear in competitive examinations;

• To provide Health Insurance to them;

• To facilitate livelihood initiative at community level; and

• To provide financial assistance for construction of houses for members of these communities.

Road Ahead

• The colonial mindset about the Denotified Tribes having “criminal tendencies” needs to change to ensure their human rights are not violated.

• Proper documentation of their identities needs to be speeded up so that they get the benefits of welfare schemes and the basic needs are provided to them. 

• The NHRC has suggested that there is a need to ensure representation of Denotified tribes in parliament, government institutions and higher education to  mitigate the challenges faced by them.