SHILLONG: With the 2027 General Population Census fast approaching, the All Tiwa Student Union (ATSU), Meghalaya State Committee, has issued a direct ultimatum to both Central and State Governments: recognize the Tiwa (Lalung) community as a Scheduled Tribe in Meghalaya or face aggressive legal action.
At an urgent press conference in Shillong, ATSU President Podenor Amse and General Secretary Albert Dilar highlighted the critical timeline—house listing and numbering operations for the census begin next month, in August 2026. The leaders stressed that immediate inclusion of the Tiwa (Lalung) in official records is essential to prevent the community from being misrepresented or excluded from the census at the outset.
This impending census has brought a decade-old grievance to the fore. The Tiwa leaders pointed out that, while several other migratory communities have been granted Scheduled Tribe status in Meghalaya, the Tiwas—who have been present since statehood in 1972—remain excluded. Representing a coalition of the All Tiwa Women Association (ATWA), Tiwa Mathonlai Tokhra (Tiwa Literary Society), and the Tiwa Cultural Society, the union declared the community’s unity and frustration at continued government inaction.
ALSO READ: UDP Backs Strict SIR Verification, Opposes Misuse of Khasi Surnames by Illegal Immigrants
To support their demand, the ATSU cited extensive historical and administrative evidence. Referencing the research of the late NEHU scholar Bah B. Pakem, they traced the Tiwa kingdom of Gobha’s historic boundaries alongside the Jaintia Kingdom, and outlined the 1832 conflict and subsequent British annexation, which led to administrative splits and reorganization—leaving parts of the Tiwa homeland divided between Assam and Meghalaya. The leaders also cited formal acknowledgments from the Syiem of Hima Khyrim, including a certificate from Dr. B. S. Syiem to then Chief Minister E. K. Mawlong, validating the Tiwas as an integral part of the Hima, and noted the community’s continuous self-governance through their traditional chief, the Loro.
The press conference saw strong support from traditional leaders, Dorbar Basan dignitaries, Lyngdoh, Doloi of the Five Raid, village headmen, and NGOs. Concluding, ATSU laid out two urgent demands: immediate inclusion of the Tiwas in the Scheduled Tribes list for the 2027 Census before August’s house-listing operations, and formal, overdue Scheduled Tribe recognition under their rightful identity. The leadership warned that, after over thirty years of peaceful and constitutional advocacy, their patience is exhausted—they are now prepared to pursue all available legal and democratic avenues to secure recognition and protect their rights.
(4FrontMedia news)
