The forthcoming elections to the gram panchayats (GPs) across the State are likely to witness a significant rise in the local bodies reserved for the candidates hailing from the Scheduled Tribes.
The number of GPs reserved for the ST communities is likely to be much higher than the 9% reserved for them in the past, if the recent developments like carving out of over 4,300 new GPs are any indication.
Of the 12,751 GPs that are going to polls, close to 1,300 are tandas with 100% ST population which had been upgraded into GPs after the enactment of the Telangana Panchayat Raj Act in March this year. This could be seen from the clause in the Panchayat Raj Act which expressly states: “While computing the total population of the State for the purpose of making reservation to the STs and SCs, the population of the Scheduled area and the population of the villages where the 100 % population is Scheduled Tribes shall be excluded”. This is in addition to another 1,300 GPs lying in the Agency areas governed by the Integrated Tribal Development Agency where elected representatives from the Schedled Tribes are entitled to contest for the posts of sarpanches and ward members.
This would leave the officials to finalise the rule of reservation for little over 10,000 GPs, excluding those under the ST category. Senior officials said reservation for the SCs and STs would continue in these GPs thus taking the total number of panchayats reserved for the STs around 3,000, over 20% of total GPs. The previous elections to the local bodies saw over 60% reservation to the BCs, SCs and STs for which the Supreme Court gave its one time acceptance. But the Apex Court made clear that the quota this time around should be capped at 50%. The development comes in the light of the intensified efforts by the officials concerned to meet the January 10 deadline set by the High Court.