Karimnagar: Communities seek caste name changes at BC Commission’s public hearing

People belonging to Pichakuntla, Dommari, Reddygandla and others wanted the commission to change their caste name since they and their children were feeling shy to tell their caste name to others.

Karimnagar: While many communities wanted to change their group in the BC category, afew communities wanted to change their caste name. In this regard, people from various BC communities are presenting representations to the Telangana Commission for Backward Classes in the public hearing conducted in different districts. People belonging to Pichakuntla, Dommari, Reddygandla and others wanted the commission to change their caste name since they and their children were feeling shy to tell their caste name to others.

While interacting with media persons here on Friday, BC Commissioner Chairman G Niranjan said that they were getting representations from different communities for the change of their caste name besides groups change in BC category. He said he felt very sad when the people from the Pichakuntla community informed that they were feeling shy to tell their caste’s name in schools for their children’s admission.

At the same time, many communities wanted to change their group from upper category to lower category to get more benefits. Thagara Uppara community, which is in BC ‘B’ category, wanted to change to BC ‘A’. Gangaputra from BC ‘A’ to SC, Medari BC ‘A’ to ST, Dudekula from BC ‘B’ to ‘E’, Mudiraj BC ‘D’ to ‘A’.

While some of the Muslim communities were there in BC ‘E’, others in BC ‘B’. Meanwhile, Syed and a few other communities were not there in any group. So, they wanted all of them to be in a single category, the Chairman informed. A few families migrated to Kamareddy and Nizamabad areas about 400 years ago. Surprisingly, they do not know their caste name though they claim themselves as Lodha community.

As they do not have caste, they were getting certificates by claiming themselves as Mudiraj community. Local Mudiraj community people were opposing it. There are Lodha community people in Mangalhat and Dhoolpet areas in Hyderabad. They enquired about relation between both the communities but no relation was established, he informed. When asked about the upper caste people from Andhra Pradesh settled in Telangana were getting benefit by claiming themselves as BCs, he said that the issue was in the notice of the commission and they would take a decision on the issue. Answering a query that non-BC communities were getting BC certificates, Chairman warned to register criminal cases against such people. Few people also submitted representation for no-caste certificates.

Terming caste census as a great opportunity, the Chairman asked the people to register their details perfectly with enumerators during the door to door survey since it was the only opportunity to show their socio-economic status. Communities and caste organisations should record details perfectly.