Agartala, Dec 4 (TIWN): Today in Parliament during zero hour, MP Jiten Chaudhury raised the issue of extending ST facilities to Kok-Borok speaking people in Assam, Mizoram.

Mr Chaudhury's speech at Parliament on Thrusday :

For centuries Kok-Borok speaking people were having their habitat to the eastern part of the Indian Sub-continent, ranging from Barak Valley to Chittagong Hill Tracts and up to the bank of Meghna. The Kok-Borok speaking feudal rulers reigned in Tripura for more than thirteen hundred years, before merger with the Indian Union, till October, 1949.

Kok-Borok speaking people are commonly known as ‘Borok’. Kok-Borok is a language under the Tibeto-Burman group, which is the mother tongue of one and half million Borok people, now inhabiting in Tripura, Mizoram and Assam state of India, and in Chittagong Hill Tracts and other four Districts of Bangladesh. The Boroks are sub-divided in eight sub-communities i.e.; Debbarma(Tripuri), Tripura, Reang(Bru), Jamatia, Koloi, Rupini, Murasing and Uchui.

The Constitution of India has inducted the Kok-Borok speaking people as Tripuri, Tripura, Noatia, Jamatia, Reang, Uchui and Murasing etc. Which is recognised as Scheduled Tribe; hence they are enjoying all kind of facilities, extended under the provision of the Constitution i.e.; reservation in Government job and education, special dispensation & right over land and other economic benefits etc.

In Tripura State the Kok-Borok speaking people are smoothly enjoying the benefits, enshrined under the Constitutions along with the others, as the list of the tribes & communities is elaborately explained. But in Assam and Mizoram, there has been lot of confusion and denial taking place in determining the Scheduled Tribe rights and benefits to the section of Kok-Borok speaking people inhabiting in Karimganj, Hilakandi and Silchar Districts of Assam, and Mummit and some other Districts of Mizoram, due to lack of elaboration in the Scheduled Tribe list. In these two States the Kok-Borok speaking communities are mentioned as Reang only, hence a population of about 20,000 and plus,  who’s surnames are Debbarma, Tripura, Jamatia, Rupini, Uchui, Murasing and Koloi are being denied from having Scheduled Tribe certificate. This population are mostly surviving on jhum cultivation and very poor. Due to absence of Sch. Tribe Certificate they are unable to claim right over the forest land under RoFR, though they are occupying those land for last couple of decades.

In the above context I would like to request the concerned Ministry of Government of India to take up the matter with the respective State Governments and act accordingly that the left out families are extended with all kind of facilities under the provision of the Constitution.