PANAJI: The United Tribals Associations Alliance (UTAA) has welcomed the notification paving the way for political reservation for the Scheduled Tribe (ST) community in Goa, but said it will continue its movement and follow up on the remaining steps to ensure reservation is implemented in the 2027 Assembly elections.
Addressing a press conference on Saturday, UTAA president Prakash Velip said the notification was a long-awaited development and thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Chief Minister Pramod Sawant for the move.
“The entire tribal community of Goa, our organisation and the tribal population, which stands at 12%, heartily welcome this notification,” Velip said.
He said the demand for political reservation had been pursued by UTAA and other tribal organisations since 2003, adding that the community had already missed four elections.
“We have already missed four elections, and to ensure we do not miss the fifth election, we have restarted our movement in Goa under the banner of the UTA organisation. This movement is currently active and will continue,” he said.
Velip stressed that the notification was only the first step in the process.
“This notification is a positive sign and a long-standing demand, but it is only the first step, not the final one,” he said.
He said UTAA would continue its follow-up with the government as the process moves ahead, particularly with regard to the remaining procedures involving delimitation and the Election Commission.
According to Velip, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant assured the organisation that the process would be initiated within approximately two and a half months, with the Goa government expected to complete the procedures required on its part by the end of October.
“We definitely trust that they will get this done,” he said.
Velip said UTAA expects the reservation to be in place for the 2027 Assembly elections, which are due in February. Based on the ST population figure of 10.23%, he said the organisation expects four Assembly constituencies to be reserved.
“We understand that our candidates will contest the 2027 elections, which are due in February. In this reserved category, based on a 10.23% population, we expect four MLAs to be directly elected,” he said.
He said UTAA would continue its mobilisation across Goa, with meetings being held across all 10 talukas. Nearly 425 meetings have already been conducted across various wards and hamlets, he said.
The organisation is also holding programmes on World Tribal Day tomorrow, including a gathering for tribal youth and children at Farmagudi and an evening programme at Nagoa-Verna through the Salcete Forum.
Velip said the movement was not restricted to political reservation, which is one of UTAA’s 12 demands.
“Reservation is merely one part. It is one of the twelve demands for which Mangesh Gaonkar and Dilip Velip sacrificed their lives,” he said.
He added that UTAA would continue to raise other issues concerning the tribal community, including farmers’ problems and educational challenges.
The organisation’s advisors are expected to meet to decide its next course of action, while UTAA will continue to monitor the implementation process and conduct timely follow-ups.
Velip, while welcoming the government’s notification, hinted that the organisation’s August 13 agitation had not been called off, saying that no one had asked them to.
