Holding a demonstration at Rani Rashmoni Road today, the West Bengal State Committee of All India Adivasi Mahasabha demanded identity cards for the state’s entire tribal population.

“The Left Front government must ensure that the state’s tribal population does not lose out on the benefits accorded to them. This is not possible unless they have identity cards,” said Shibcharan Munda, the general secretary of the organisation. About 4,000 villages in the state, mostly under developed, have a dominant tribal population.

According to the 2001 census, 44,06,794 people (around 5.5 per cent of the total population of the state) were found to belong to various tribes.

According to the people working closely with the community, the tribals want ST status as this would help them avail of the various schemes for their development.

Their other demands include the use of forest resources, allotment of land and houses under the Indira Awas Yojna. Jalpaiguri, Darjeeling, north and south Dinajpur, Bankura, Birbhum and Purulia are some of the districts in the state with a considerable tribal population.

At present, the state government has initiated various policies for tribals, including an assessment on whether they want to study in Santhali, and opening Santhali medium schools for them.

The minister for water resources, investigation and development, Nandagopal Bhattacharya, also addressed the gathering.