NEW DELHI, August 1: The Centre has reiterated that there is no constitutional provision to grant interim Scheduled Tribe (ST) status to any community, while confirming the reconstitution of a Group of Ministers committee in Assam to examine the long-standing demand for ST inclusion by six communities in the state.

Responding to an unstarred question in the Lok Sabha raised by Congress MPs Md. Rakibul Hussain and Shri Pradyut Bordoloi, Union Minister of State for Tribal Affairs, Shri Durgadas Uikey, stated that the Government of Assam has submitted its recommendation for granting ST status to the Chutiya, Koch-Rajbongshi, Matak, Moran, Tai-Ahom, and Tea Tribe communities.

Uikey clarified that the Government of India has a structured set of modalities, laid out in 1999 and amended in 2002 and 2022, for processing such requests. As per these guidelines, only those proposals which are recommended and justified by the respective State Government or Union Territory Administration, and receive concurrence from both the Registrar General of India (RGI) and the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes (NCST), are considered for legislative amendment.

The minister emphasized that the process is ongoing and proposals remain under examination at various stages. If a proposal is not cleared by the RGI, the concerned State Government is asked to address the objections and furnish additional information.

Providing further clarity, the Assam Government informed that, in line with a 2019 order from the Ministry of Home Affairs, a Group of Ministers (GoM) was constituted to determine the quantum of reservation for the six communities, reassess the quota for OBCs following the possible creation of a new ST category, and devise safeguards to protect the interests and privileges of the existing ST communities in Assam.

The original GoM held multiple rounds of discussions with representatives and leaders from both the demanding communities and existing tribal groups. The committee was reconstituted earlier this year via notifications issued on July 4, 2024, and March 1, 2025, to continue the deliberations.

The issue of ST status for the six communities has remained a sensitive and politically significant topic in Assam, with various student organizations, including the All Assam Koch Rajbongshi Students’ Union (AKRSU), regularly staging protests to press their demands. The Centre’s statement reaffirms that while the matter is under active consideration, no temporary or interim status can be granted under the current legal framework.