Vijayawada: AP State ST Commission former member and founder-cum-national president of Girijana Praja Samakhya (GPS) Vadithya Sankar Naik on Tuesday urged State Election Commissioner Anil Chandra Punetha to constitute villages, thandas and gudems with 80 per cent or more ST population as separate gram panchayats before the forthcoming local body elections. In a representation submitted here, Naik requested the commission to recommend to the state government that all eligible tribal habitations be notified as separate panchayats and elections conducted accordingly. He pointed out that while villages with 100 percent ST population were earlier granted panchayat status, several habitations with 80-90 percent ST population continue to be excluded, depriving tribals of constitutional rights. He said the lack of separate panchayats has hit governance, welfare schemes, drinking water, road connectivity, education and healthcare. He stressed tribal self-governance is a constitutional responsibility and sought priority notification to ensure holistic development of tribal communities.