Evolution of NCST

  • National Commission for Scheduled Tribes was formed on the 89th Amendment of the Constitution coming into force from 19 February 2004, under Article 338A on bifurcation of former National Commission for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes to supervise the implementation of various safeguards provided to Scheduled Tribes under the Constitution.
  • By this amendment, the erstwhile National Commission for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes was replaced by two separate Commissions specifically:
    • The National Commission for Scheduled Castes (NCSC).
    • The National Commission for Scheduled Tribes (NCST).
  • For effective functioning of the office of the Commissioner for SCs & STs in accordance with the needs of the time, 17 regional offices of the Commissioner were established in different parts of the country, which were regulated by Assistant Commissioners for SCs & STs who were, in July, 1965 re-designated as Deputy Commissioners.
  • In June, 1967, the 17 Regional Offices were re-organized into five Zonal Offices and placed under the control of a newly formed Directorate General of Backward Classes Welfare in the Department of Social Welfare.
  • Each Zonal Offices was headed by a Zonal Director, Backward Classes Welfare (a newly created post) and the post of Deputy Commissioner for SCs & STs was re-designated as Deputy Director, Backward Classes Welfare and placed under the control of a Zonal Director located at Chandigarh (Northern Zone), Bhopal (Central Zone), Patna (Eastern Zone), Baroda (Western Zone) and Madras (Southern Zone).