Team Goemkarponn
PANAJI: The Social Welfare Department has issued instructions to all government offices, public sector undertakings, autonomous institutions, municipalities and panchayats to discontinue the use of the term “Harijan” in official communication and documentation, and to replace it with “Scheduled Castes.”
The move follows concerns raised by the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), which took serious note of the continued use of caste-identifying and potentially derogatory terminology in official records.
The Commission flagged references not only in correspondence but also in the naming of villages, localities, settlements and hamlets.
In a circular issued by Director of Social Welfare Dipak Desai, all Heads of Departments (HODs) have been directed to avoid using the word “Harijan” in any formal communication or records going forward.
The circular states that it has come to the government’s attention that several departments, corporations, educational institutions, local bodies and panchayats continue to use the term while referring to members of the Scheduled Caste community.
It notes that the NHRC has taken a serious view of this practice, particularly in the context of official documents containing caste-indicative expressions.
According to the directive, continued usage of the term is considered discriminatory toward the Scheduled Caste community.
Authorities have therefore been instructed to refrain from employing the word “Harijan” in any official correspondence, notifications or records, and to use “Scheduled Castes” in all future communications instead.
The department has called for strict compliance with the directive across all levels of administration to ensure that official language aligns with constitutional and human rights standards.
