Kolkata: Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday expressed displeasure over alleged errors in the list of beneficiaries receiving OBC certificates during a meeting of the Tribes Advisory Committee at Nabanna.
Sources said a minister elected from a tribal-dominated area pointed out irregularities and handed over a letter to Banerjee. The Chief Minister reportedly expressed dissatisfaction and asked Chief Secretary Manoj Pant to investigate the allegations. She also instructed District Magistrates to exercise caution in verifying beneficiary lists.
In a related matter, Banerjee raised concerns about recent incidents in Jhargram, where students who studied in the Alchiki script faced examination questions in other languages. The Chief Minister emphasised that Alchiki is already recognised as an official language and incorporated into the curriculum, and she ordered the Chief Secretary to look into the issue.
Banerjee also directed her four ministers previously assigned to address forcible acquisition of tribal land—Birbaha Hansda, Bulu Chik Baraik, Sandhya Rani Tudu, and Jyotsna Mandi—to be more proactive and take tougher measures against such attempts.
The Chief Minister instructed that government schemes be promoted widely in tribal-dominated districts, ensuring benefits reach tribals at the grassroots level. She also called for greater emphasis on the promotion of tribal culture, literature, and thought.
Although representatives of the BJP were invited to the meeting, none attended. Banerjee is learnt to have stated that politics should not hinder the development of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes and that invitations were extended with an open mind. She added that the government would not be concerned if any political party chose not to participate. A total of 11 members of the Tribes Advisory Committee were present at Monday’s meeting.