Uttarakhand HC Directs Developmental Activities For Raji Tribes

The Uttarakhand High Court has directed the Central and State Governments to take immediate remedial steps to ensure the welfare of Raji people in Uttarakhand. The Government has been aksed by the bench of Chief Justice Vipin Sanghi and Rakesh Thapliyal to file affidavits for disclosing the steps taken and those than make the situations better.

The Court was hearing a plea by the Uttarakhand State Legal Services Authority( USLSA) that mentioned about the population of the Raji tribe that was on the decline. The Government had not taken any steps to provide basic facilities in the villages where the tribe resides. The surveys also showed that there were hardly survivors beyond the age of 55 years and the life expectancy of the people being very low.

The Counsel for the USLSA said that the Primary Health Centres were at a distance of minimum 25 kilometres from the village where the members reside and the educational facilities were not available to them.

The State could not give excuses for not taking up such developmental activities in the areas as it falls under the purview of Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006

The Court has asked the authorities to file responses and November 6 has been kept as the next date of hearing.