Kanimozhi urges Centre to include kuruman tribal community as kurumans on ST list

CHENNAI: DMK MP Kanimozhi on Thursday urged the Centre to include the kuruman tribal community as ‘kurumans’ on the Scheduled Tribes.
In a letter to Union minister for tribal affairs Arjun Munda, Kanimozhi said a study by the Nilgiris-based Tribal Research Centre on the social structure, clan organisation and life cycle rituals suggests that the names of kurumba, kurumbar and kurumans are similar.
Various anthropological studies and observations of earlier writers like Edgar Thurston, A Aiyappan, K S Singh and others revealed that kurumba, kurumbar and kurumans mean the same and all belong to the same community, she said.
“The study concludes that this community people are eligible to be identified as Scheduled Tribe under the name kurumans in serial no 18 of the ST list of Tamil Nadu,” said Kanimozhi.
She requested the minister to take necessary steps to include kurumba, kurumbar and kuruman to the name kurumans. “This would ensure social justice to the people belonging to these communities while moving consolidated amendment as envisaged under Article 342,” said Kanimozhi.