Shillong, May 28: The Khasi Hills Autonomous District Council (KHADC) has sought intervention of the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes (NCST) on the need to amend the Constitution (Scheduled Tribe) Order, 1950 to ensure that only tribes who are indigenous to Meghalaya are included in the list.

The Council has also suggested the need to amend the Meghalaya Land Transfer Act by coming up with a clear cut definition of a tribal, to prevent tribals from other states to buy land in the state.

“We have articulated our views before the NCST (during its visit to the state) since an appropriate forum to resolve this matter is the Central government. We want that the ST Order, 1950 should be amended and to include only tribes who are indigenous to Meghalaya,” KHADC executive member in-charge Trade department, Paul Lyngdoh told reporters on Tuesday.

“We will also be raising the same view before the state government since there is an urgent need to amend the Land Transfer Act in relation to the definition of a tribal. The state government is the competent authority to define a tribal otherwise our land will be alienated to other tribes,” he said adding “Unless we amend the Land Transfer Act to bar tribals from other states, the problem will continue.”

His statement also came in the wake of the recent demand made by the traditional heads under the banner of Ka Synjuk Ki Nongsynshar Shnong Nongthymmai Pyllun to delete other tribes from the ST list of the state.

Lyngdoh, who is also the working president of the United Democratic Party (UDP), said that the ST list of Meghalaya in fact was a copy paste list from the composite State of Assam, which includes in it the different tribes.

He further pointed out that the other states in the North East like Nagaland and Mizoram after being carved out of Assam, they have reduced or limit the number of tribes and include only the tribes who are indigenous to that state.

“But in the case of Meghalaya, all the tribes and sub-tribes (even the Mizo, Naga) are being included in the list… we should have amended the Order the day when Meghalaya got its own statehood because we have been carved out of Assam and why should we adopt the Assam list,” he stated.

The UDP leader said that it would not be factual to say that there has been no attempt made on this regard and recalled that during 2008-09, there has been a proposal submitted before the state Cabinet to limit the number of indigenous tribes.

“There was a group of NGOs at that point of time which were of the view that the indigenous tribes means only Khasi, Jaintia and Garo but there was another view which says that the Karbis are also indigenous tribe of the state so also the Kochs and Hajongs in Garo Hills…so the matter was pending (till date),” Lyngdoh said.