Jammu and Kashmir’s Valmiki community has been officially included in the Scheduled Caste list, the Union Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment informed Parliament on Wednesday.

The update came as part of a written reply in the Rajya Sabha to a question on pending caste inclusion proposals from various States and Union Territories.
Minister of State Ramdas Athawale stated that inclusion proposals from Jammu and Kashmir were among those processed in the last four years. While one proposal, relating to the Phalahre community, was sent back to the Jammu and Kashmir’s administration for further justification based on the comments of the Registrar General of India, the proposal for including the Valmiki community has already been approved and added to the Scheduled Caste list.
The minister said State Governments and Union Territories routinely send recommendations to the Centre for inclusion, exclusion or modification of communities in the Scheduled Caste list. Each proposal is evaluated under established modalities, which require concurrence from both the Registrar General of India and the National Commission for Scheduled Castes before legislative action can be initiated under Article 341(2) of the Constitution.
According to the data placed before the House, several States have forwarded proposals over the past four years. Tamil Nadu sought inclusion for the Dhobi and Devendrakula Velalar communities, of which Devendrakula Velalar has been approved and added to the SC list. Chhattisgarh’s proposal for Mahara/Mahra has also been accepted, while its proposals for Doma remain under examination.
Other proposals, including Andhra Pradesh’s request for Beda (Budga) Jangam and Maharashtra’s request for Dhobi, have been forwarded to the Registrar General of India for comments. A proposal for the Domra community in Jharkhand has been sent to the National Commission for Scheduled Castes for its observations.
Some recommendations have been returned to States for additional justification, including Gujarat’s request concerning the Chain, Kewat, Mallah and Nishad groups, and Himachal Pradesh’s submission for the Nat, Natada and Bajigar communities.
Athawale said all proposals have been processed according to laid-down procedures, and the Government continues to review submissions based on demographic evidence, historical records and statutory guidelines.