Karnataka: Govt will send fresh proposal to Centre to include Kurubas in ST list, says Siddaramaiah

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Wednesday said the state government would send a fresh proposal to the Centre recommending inclusion of the Kuruba community under the scheduled tribes (ST) list along with empirical data and supporting records.

The CM, who addressed the gathering speaking at a community event in Kalaburagi, said the government had recommended the same in the past, but the Centre rejected the proposal. His government would make a fresh attempt, he said, holding out a promise to the members of a community which is also the third largest in Karnataka.

Siddaramaiah urged the members to record their community’s name as Kuruba in the caste census beginning on September 22.


His government, on Tuesday, revived efforts to bring a Kuruba sub-caste under the ST list inviting backlash from the Opposition BJP.

Kurubas (shepherds) is an OBC, but its members have been pressing for an ST tag. The STs enjoy a quota of 7% in Karnataka. The community counts Siddaramaiah as its tallest political leader.

The ST Welfare department is discussing the similarities between the Kurubas of Bidar, Kalaburagi (Gulbarga) and Yadgir districts with the state’s Gonda community. The Gonda community is a part of the ST community, and recognising the Kurubas of the three districts as Gonda would entitle them to the ST tag.

The ST has 53 sub-castes including Kadu Kurubas and Jenu Kurubas in Kodagu and Chamarajanagar and Gonda Kuruba in Bidar.

OBC communities such as Gollas, Uppars, Savitha Samaja and Ganga Mathasthas have long demanded their inclusion in the ST list and the latest initiative by Siddaramaiah would only trigger those demands, said SG Malagi, a Ballari-based expert on ST communities.