NEW DELHI: The National Commission for Scheduled Tribes is planning to come up with an advisory council in order to use the panel’s potential in policymaking initiatives.
Currently, the NCST is primarily serving as a grievance redressal body and is not actively involved in any policmaking, said an official. Coming up with an advisory council will help the Commission boost its role in long-term policymaking framework for the scheduled tribes, the official added.
The council would hold consultative meetings with different stakeholders and proactively contribute to policymaking. The NCST's mandate includes participating and advising in the planning process of socio-economic development of the scheduled tribes and to evaluate the progress of their development.
The Commission would tap on to the expertise of eminent people working with the tribal population and former members of the Commission. It would also engage past members, officials and chairpersons of the Commission.
"The NCST has moved a proposal to bring in an advisory council which will ideate on long-term policymaking formulations. The former members who have been with the Commission till the last five years would be engaged. There would also be the provision for nomination of members who have worked extensively with the tribal population," said NCST secretary AK Singh.
The NCST is also writing to the states in order to strengthen the state commissions working for the scheduled tribe people. In several states, the commissions for scheduled tribes are non-functional and lack adequate manpower to deal with regional-level issues and grievances.
In a conference of the NCST and state commissins for scheduled tribes held on Monday, several states reported they are working with inadequate staff.
"Several commissions despite being constituted are barely functional. Appointments remain pending and therefore, the commissions cannot carry out their responsibilities to their full potential. Rajasthan, Telangana, Karnataka are a few examples where the commissions are not fully functional. With several states not having constituted commissions, the NCST has decided to write to them in order to ensure state commissions are formed," said Singh.