Latest news with #STandSCDevelopmentdepartment
New Indian Express
4 days ago
- Politics
- New Indian Express
'Harijan' out of Odisha government's official vocabulary
BHUBANESWAR: In a significant move, the state government on Tuesday asked all its departments and offices to not use the term 'harijan' and replace it with the Constitutional term 'Scheduled Caste' in English or 'Anusuchita Jati' in Odia for denoting persons belonging to the category. This comes following a directive by the Odisha Human Rights Commission (OHRC) against use of the term harijan for SCs. The ST and SC Development department in a circular to all the principal secretaries and commissionercum- secretaries directed them to ensure that the term 'harijan' shall not be used in any off i c i a l communications, records, caste certificates, etc. The department also asked the officers to take steps to sensitise all employees in this regard and ensure that existing documents or records are aligned with the changes. State coordinator of Bahujan Students & Youth Front Anil Kumar Mallick had in May this year filed a petition with the OHRC seeking its intervention in removing the term 'harijan' from use by public institutions, educational establishments, news reports and government communications. He reasoned that 'harijan' has long been associated with untouchability and caste-based discrimination against the Scheduled Castes. The Supreme Court had also declared it as unconstitutional and derogatory and violating the rights of SCs under the SC/ST Prevention of Atrocities Act, 1989. Despite this, the term continues to be used in Odisha, he said. For instance, there are seven schools in the state that have harijan in their names. These are Harijan Basti Primary School at Nayagarh, Harijan Govt Primary School at Athagarh, Panichhatra Harijansahi Prathamika Vidyalaya and Jhadlinga Harijansahi Prakalpa Prathamika Vidyalaya in Puri district, Nikirai Harijan Prathamika Vidyalaya in Kendrapara, Indira Priyadarshini Harijan Adivasi Ucha Vidyalaya in Banki, and Ertal Harijan Sarakari Prathamika Vidyalaya in Bhadrak. The OHRC asked the ST and SC Development department to take appropriate action in this connection. In 2012, the ministry of Social Justice had asked chief secretaries of all states and UTs that only the Constitutional term Scheduled Case in English and its appropriate translation in other languages should alone be used for denoting persons belonging to SC communities.
New Indian Express
09-08-2025
- Politics
- New Indian Express
Centre's Aadi Karmayogi Abhiyan to cover 7,623 tribal villages across 22 Odisha districts
BHUBANESWAR: The ST and SC Development department has informed that the 'Aadi Karmayogi Abhiyan', launched by the Ministry of Tribal Affairs to ensure last-mile delivery of tribal welfare schemes, will cover 22 districts, 213 blocks, and 7,623 tribal villages in the state. The Abhiyan seeks to make governance more effective by preparing 20 lakh field-level functionaries throughout the country who will lead development initiatives in tribal regions and facilitate the seamless delivery of essential government services. Under it, an Aadi Karmayogi cadre will be structured to include Aadi Karmayogis (government functionaries serving at the grassroots), Aadi Sahayogis (youth leaders, teachers, doctors and social workers) and Aadi Saathis (tribal leaders, SHG members and volunteers). As a part of the initiative, a seven-day regional process lab (RPL) workshop was recently conducted in Bhubaneswar under the umbrella of the Dharti Aba Janjatiya Gram Utkarsh Abhiyan (DAJGUA). The workshop was supported by the Bharat Rural Livelihoods Foundation (BRLF) and trained 24 participants from Jharkhand, Bihar, and Odisha. These participants who are designated as state master trainers, will further train district master trainers, who in turn will take the training to the block level. The Bhubaneswar workshop was the fourth in the series of Regional Process Labs, following successful sessions in Bengaluru, Bhopal and Dehradun. The initiative promotes citizen-centric governance by institutionalising grievance redressal mechanisms, encouraging localised planning, and fostering collaborative implementation, a release by the department said. The Abhiyan is being implemented through inter-ministerial convergence, with key ministries such as Tribal Affairs, Rural Development, Women and Child Development, Jal Shakti, Education, and Environment, Forest and Climate Change working in close coordination.
