HYDERABAD: The proposal to increase reservations for tribals in Telangana from 6 to 12 per cent has become contentious with Lambadas insisting on its implementation while the Adivasis harbouring reservations with tribal communities having differing perceptions. The Lambada tribals are planning state-wide agitation and meetings on May 30 to exert pressure on the state government to increase the quota as promised while the Adivasis have decided to keep away.
During the reorganisation of AP in 1956, Y Gadilinganna Goud, who had represented Kurnool parliamentary constituency then, had brought up the issue of including Lambadas in the STs list in AP. The proposal was rejected on September 9, 1956. However, Sugalis found their way into the STs list, confined to certain areas in Andhra, where they enjoyed that status.
“It was only during the Emergency period in 1976, that the Lambadas who claimed their identity as different from Sugalis, got themselves into the STs list. No due process was followed and their inclusion was not done as per Article 342 of the constitution,” says G Venkat Ramana, Chairman, AADHAR Society.
Not much data is available on the population of Lambadas who lived in the present Telangana region before 1956. However, as per the AP Backward Classes Commission report of 1968, which took into account the census done in the erstwhile Hyderabad State in 1931 comprising Telangana including parts of Karnataka and Maharashtra into account, the estimated Lambada population was 3,84,804.
As per the 1981 population census, there were 1,90,786 Sugalis in the Andhra region, whereas there were 9,80,242 Lambadas in Telangana region, after being included in STs list in Telangana.It is interesting to note that though area restriction for Lambadas was removed in the erstwhile AP, it was not applied to Yanadi or Valmikis in Andhra region, or Kolam, Thoti or Pardhan communities in Telangana region, who enjoyed their ST status only in their particular regions.
In 1981, Lambadas in Telangana formed only 1.83 per cent of the total population in the erstwhile AP, whereas all other ST communities in Telangana combined formed 1.41 per cent. By the 2011 census, they formed 2.48 per cent and the rest formed 1.61 per cent.
As per official data gathered through Central government programmes and schemes, of the total 3,85,10,982 population in the present Telangana, there are 28,03,038 Lambadas forming 7.27 per cent of the total population, and all other Adivasi communities combined are 18,18,280 in number, forming 4.72 per cent of the population.
“Lambadas have grown from 1.83 per cent in 1981 to 7.27 per cent presently, whereas all other Adivasis grew from 1.41 per cent to 4.72 per cent. So where is this demand for 12 per cent quota coming from, to benefit whom,” asks Batta Venkateswarlu, state president of Adivasi Students’ forum.
Large-scale migration
Because of Lambadas enjoying SC status in Karnataka (presently disputed by Dalits there) and BC status in Maharashtra, Adivasis allege that there has been large-scale migration of Lambadas to Telangana, with many using voting rights in both the states.
For Adivasis, reservations have never benefited either in education or jobs. So the question of increasing quota of tribals is of no use to us, but it will benefit the Lambadas who have been claiming our share of reservations as theirs for long,” observes Professor K Kishore.
“We do not want any increase in reservation quota. All we need is the Fifth Schedule status to agency areas, which has been under threat consistently, questioning the very identity of Adivasis,” Venkat Ramana opines.