Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah says his government dedicated secretariat for welfare of ST community

Bengaluru: Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Saturday said that the state government has made a decision to create a dedicated secretariat for the well-being of the Scheduled Tribes (ST) community. Siddaramaiah made the announcement on the occasion of the Maharshi Valmiki Jayanti.

Siddaramaiah alleged that the previous BJP government had not done enough for the welfare of the Scheduled Caste (SC) and Scheduled Tribe (ST) communities in the state. He claimed that only the Congress government had spent enough money for the welfare of these communities.

The STs constitute 7 per cent of the state's population. In 2021, during the BJP government's tenure, a Cabinet decision was made to create an ST welfare secretariat. Stating that the ST community would support Congress during the Lok Sabha elections, ST Welfare Minister B Nagendra said, "In the assembly elections, out of 15 constituencies reserved for STs, the Congress won in 14. Even during the Lok Sabha polls, our community will stand with the Congress."

During the event, the Maharshi Valmiki awards were conferred on eight people.

(With PTI inputs)