The Centre has in the run-up to the general election set up a panel that will suggest measures to ensure that the most deprived Dalit communities, such as the Madigas of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, receive a more equal share of Scheduled Caste welfare benefits.

Some Dalit community leaders were sceptical, flagging legal weaknesses in the initiative and saying similar efforts by some states had proved mere “tokenism”, while others welcomed it.

A Dalit leader said that if the government was serious about helping the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, it should distribute land and implement reservation in private-sector jobs.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had in November attended a rally organised by the Madiga Reservation Porata Samithi (MRPS), which has been asking for sub-categorisation and sub-quotas among the SCs. While the government cannot move on sub-quotas since the matter is before the Supreme Court, Modi had promised to set up a committee that would suggest measures to empower the Madigas.

Two senior government officials said the social justice and empowerment ministry had set up the committee, made up of secretaries and headed by cabinet secretary Rajiv Gauba. They said the panel was expected to hand in its report “soon”.

“The committee has been set up keeping in mind the Prime Minister’s promise to the Madigas. But the recommendations will have implications for (the most deprived Dalit communities across) the entire country,” one of the officials said.

He suggested the measures could include educational support in the form of scholarships and residential schools for the most deprived Dalit groups.

Dalits had faced massacres in undivided Andhra Pradesh such as those in Karamchedu (1985) and Tsundur (1991). This led to a consolidation of the community.

However, by 1994, the MRPS had emerged to protest against what the Madigas felt was the Mala community cornering a “disproportionate” share of the SC reservation benefits, and to demand sub-quotas.

The Mahars in Maharashtra, Pariahs in Tamil Nadu and Chamars in Uttar Pradesh, too, are relatively better off than their fellow Dalit communities, some of which have been demanding sub-quotas.

Rahul Sonpimple, leader of the newly formed All India Independent Scheduled Caste Association, said several states had earlier made similar efforts to provide proportionate welfare benefits to the different SC sub-castes, but without much success.

“Most of the time, these initiatives turn out to be tokenism. There is no monitoring and the uptake is negligible,” Sonpimple said.

He said sub-quotas would not succeed unless efforts were made to create an eligible pool of candidates within each caste.

“In India, the Dalits, tribal communities and the Other Backward Classes provide cheap labour to the economy. The economic model is thriving on the exploitation of SCs, STs and OBCs. This can stop if the government gives adequate land to them in rural areas. There should be reservation in the private sector,” Sonpimple said.

Efforts by some states to provide sub-quotas to Dalit sub-groups have led to the matter being referred to a constitution bench.