Historically, Karnataka has made a bold attempt to include various castes, races, tribes while creating its unified scheduled caste category. Around 101 communities, including denotified, nomadic and semi-nomadic tribes, were included in the existing Scheduled Caste list along with “ex-untouchable” communities. The diversity of castes, tribes, and races included in the Scheduled Caste list created various challenges to public policy interventions related to the provision of reservation in politics, employment, and educational opportunities. This article traces the complex journey of inclusion of denotified tribes to the Scheduled Caste list through a colonial and postcolonial policy narrative and its challenges.
