State of denotified, nomadic and semi-nomadic tribes in India

Context 

A standing committee of Parliament has criticised the functioning of the development programme for de-notified, nomadic and semi-nomadic tribes.

Who are denotified, nomadic and semi-nomadic tribes?

• Denotified tribes (DNTs) are communities that were notified as being ‘born criminal’ during the British regime under a series of laws starting with the Criminal Tribes Act of 1871.
  • They were denotified in 1952 when independent India repealed this act but the Habitual Offenders Act, 1952, kicked in soon after.
• Nomadic and semi-nomadic communities are defined as those who move from one place to another rather than living at one place all the time.

Important Commissions

• A National Commission for De-notified, Nomadic and Semi-Nomadic Tribes (NCDNT) was first set up in 2003 and later reconstituted in 2005.
  • It was headed by Balkrishna Sidram Renke and estimated their population at around 10.74 crore based on Census 2001.
• A new Commission which was constituted in 2014 to prepare a state-wise list submitted its report in 2018 identifying 1,262 communities as de-notified, nomadic and semi-nomadic.

Development and Welfare Board for De-notified, Nomadic and Semi-Nomadic Communities (DWBDNC)

• The 2014 commission that submitted a report in 2018 had recommended the setting of up a permanent commission for these communities.
• However, the government set up the Development and Welfare Board for De-notified, Nomadic and Semi-Nomadic Communities (DWBDNC) under the Societies Registration Act, 1860.
  • The DWBDNC was constituted in 2019 under the chairmanship of Bhiku Ramji Idate.
• It was set under the aegis of the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment for the purpose of implementing welfare programmes.
• Also, a committee has been set up by the NITI Aayog to complete the process of identification of the DNCs.
• Ethnographic studies of DNCs are being conducted by the Anthropological Survey of India.