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Hans India
2 days ago
- Business
- Hans India
A uniform 10% EWS quota across states is quite contentious
The Union Government has been implementing a fixed 10 per cent reservation quota for the economically weaker sections (EWS), exclusively for the general category (GC) population (castes other than SCs/STs/OBCs) in line with the 103rd Constitution Amendment Act in 2019. When it was challenged, the Supreme Court (Janhit case) upheld it in 2022. Most state governments began implementing a 10 per cent EWS quota, irrespective of the percentage of the GC population, which varies from state to state. Ironically, reservations for SCs, STs and OBCs vary across states. Such universality in the EWS quota is QUITE contentious. There are also other contradictions regarding the policy basis of this specific provision. Initial attempts: The quota for EWS began after overcoming the hurdles posed against its implementation in 1989. The then prime minister V P Singh proposed a five to 10 per cent EWS quota. However, this did not materialise. Subsequently, the P V Narasimha Rao government took the initiative forward and in 1991 mandated implementation of 10 per cent EWS quota and 27% OBC quota. The Supreme Court, however, struck down the EBC-quota in the Indira Sawhney case (1992) while upholding the Mandal Commission's recommendation of 27 per cent OBCs quota. The reasons cited was that the EWS quota was made purely on an economic-criterion, which has been contended in the judicial scrutiny of OBCs reservation in various occasions. A further, 10 per cent EWS quota exceeds the 50 per cent ceiling laid down by the apex court (Balaji and other cases). Commission and Amendment: The UPA government in 2006 constituted a S R Sinho Commission to study economic backwardness among the general category (GC) population and recommend specific policy provisions. In its 2010 report, the panel suggested an economic criterion for identifying EWS in the GC population- all persons in BPL families and those with annual income below the non-taxable income tax slab. The NDA Government considered the Sinho Commission report and brought in the 103rd Constitution Amendment Act 2019. When it was challenged in the Janhit case, the Supreme Court in 2022 upheld the 10 per cent EWS quota, following which the Centre laid a less than Rs eight lakh income-criterion for identifying the EWS eligible among GC population. Subsequently, the Union Government's Expert Group retained the criterion. Pending the final verdict, the apex court permitted the criterion. Contradictions: Certain contradictions persist in the implementation of 10 per cent EWS quota. Firstly, its policy basis is itself contradictory; study, methodology and procedures. Kaka Kalelkar chaired the first Commission for Backward Classes (1953-55) and identified BCs on the basis of four indicators-social status, education, government employment and participation in industry, trade and commerce). The B.P. Mandal chaired the second commission (1979-80) devised a three-dimensional (social, education and economic) 11-indicator criterion for identifying backward classes. The thrust was on social, educational and economic dimensions of backwardness. The Mandal Commission conducted a massive survey across 405 districts, including in urban areas. Concomitantly, many state-level committees and commissions for BCs contemplated a rigorous criterion in identifying backward classes. In contrast, the Sinho Commission solely relied on economic criteria without such rigorous study and methodology. Its recommendations are based on its visits to states and Union Territories and interacting with officials and functionaries implementing the welfare policies, experts and civil society organisations. When they were contested, the judicial proceedings did not validate the methodology and procedures conducted for the commissions and committees. In all previous verdicts, the economic-criterion has been contended the most in identifying BCs. However, there is a marked difference vis-à-vis the Sinho panel report. Secondly, the EWS quota exceeding the 50 per cent ceiling is allowed while strictly restricting the SC/ST/OBCs reservation to 50 per cent. The SC/ST quotas are fixed in proportion to the population share in states. Hence, a space for the OBCs reservation quota, at the Centre and in states, is the balance. The OBCs quota is adjusted for the creamy-layer among the OBCs. The OBCs' creamy-layer criteria differ across the Centre and states. In contrast, EWS quota at the Centre and in states is not bound by the above limitations. Of course, exclusion of GC creamy layer benefiting from EWS quota is applicable on the Rs eight lakh income criterion, the basis of which is again contentious (verdict pending). The 10 per cent EWS quota across states shall also follow the same creamy layer criterion. It is not subject to varying income levels across states and differences between the Centre and states. Thirdly, the uniform 10 per cent EWS quota is contentious as the population of SCs, STs and OBCs varies across states. Neither is the EWS quota adjusted to the GC share in a state, nor the EWS creamy-layer income to the state income. When the Centre's 27 per cent OBCs quota is not mandatory across states, then why should the 10 per cent EWS quota be? For instance it makes sense if Uttarakhand implements the 10 per cent EWS quota as more than a quarter of its population come under the GC category, which is not the same case as regards other states, in proportionate terms. BCs are the losers: The OBCs are the losers. Each social category is entitled to equal opportunity. Following democracy's basic principle of proportionate representation, quota should be earmarked in accordance with the population share in the states. The Constitution has ensured that reservations are near to the population share of SCs and STs. However, most Indian states have OBCs that are in excess of 50 per cent of their state population. The OBC quota is around 32 per cent. In many states, around 10 to 15 per cent of the population are in the GC bracket. Quota is earmarked for all the four mutually exclusive social categories-SC/ST/OBC/GC. However, the difference between reservation quota and population share of each indicates it is the highest for OBCs and hence their relative deprivation is higher. As a result, EWSs in GCs are safeguarded more than OBCs, who are historically deprived. (The writer is Associate Professor and Coordinator (Research Cell on Education), CESS, Hyderabad
NDTV
27-05-2025
- Politics
- NDTV
Dharmendra Pradhan's "Crocodile Tears" Jibe At Rahul Gandhi At NDTV Conclave
New Delhi: Reiterating his party's charge that the Congress indulges in feudal politics, Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan launched a scathing jibe at Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi today, accusing him of shedding "crocodile tears" on issues of social justice. His comment came to a question on the caste census, a long-standing demand by the Congress that has now been adopted by the BJP-led central government. Being seen as a political masterstroke, the caste survey announcement had drawn another rider from Congress, with Mr Gandhi demanding the removal of the 50% cap on reservation. Speaking at NDTV Education Conclave, Mr Pradhan said Mr Gandhi's views reflect his ignorance, given that he belongs to a party that has historically stood against matters of social justice. "Some shed crocodile tears as a political strategy. Their statements reflect their ignorance and arrogance. In this country's public domain, one family that outspokenly stood against social justice is the Gandhi family," said Mr Pradhan. The Congress defeated BR Ambedkar, the father of India's Constitution, in elections, opposed proactive and affirmative action in the constituent assembly, and refused to make the reports of the Tata Kalelkar Commission and the Mandal Commission public for a long time, he said, listing incidents when the party stood against social justice. "These feudal people think they are the country, but people have smashed this delusion by repeatedly defeating them in elections. But such a feudal mindset doesn't go away all of a sudden. They are pained when, in a democracy, those who consider the nation as their private property are unmasked. And in pain, they speak nonsense," said Mr Pradhan. A caste census would involve the systematic collection of data on the caste identities of citizens in a country where caste figures as an important factor in the social, economic, and political shaping of the society. This data can be used to frame policies to decide action and reservation. The caste count would be held as part of the next population census, the government had announced earlier this month, bringing back a nationwide process that was ditched over six decades ago in 1961. The population census was last carried out in 2011. Dharmendra Pradhan had earlier praised the centre's move, branding it as the government's "true intentions" as against the Congress's "empty slogans". The decision, he had said, was taken for the good of society and took years to develop. Rahul Gandhi, whose party had pioneered the caste census demand, had welcomed the move and offered to help the government "design" a roadmap to achieve social justice. Calling for the participation of 90% population, he had said the 50% cap on reservations was blocking the country's progress and must be eliminated.
Indian Express
27-05-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
The paradox of a de-Mandalised North and Mandalised South
Also written by Chinmay Bendre and Atharva Vyavahare The central government's decision to include caste enumeration in the upcoming Census has triggered diverse reactions across India. These reactions need to be understood in the context of emerging differences between the northern and southern states. While the former seem to be proceeding towards de-Mandalisation, the latter continue consolidating identity politics to achieve socio-economic advancement. Politics of northern states: BJP's push from Mandal to Hindutva consolidation The implementation of the Mandal Commission's recommendations reshaped northern politics significantly. It elevated the OBC leadership and caste-centric parties, fostered greater OBC participation across education, employment, and politics, and led to the decline of the Congress Party, facilitating new caste alliances. However, since 2014, this trajectory has dramatically altered. The political ascent of Hindutva, alongside the weakening of caste-based subaltern parties, marked the onset of de-Mandalisation. Mandalisation refers to the politics of opportunity, empowerment, and social justice aimed at marginalised castes. De-Mandalisation signifies a shift away from caste-based affirmative action and substantive empowerment towards welfare measures that don't follow rights-based statutory frameworks. Thus, it neglects deeper structural reforms and perpetuates existing hierarchies. Electoral outcomes validate this transition. Results of the Lok Sabha elections indicate a consistent rise in the BJP's vote share in Hindi-speaking states. In 2019, the BJP secured over 50 per cent votes in Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Haryana, and Madhya Pradesh, highlighting the significance of welfare schemes. Subaltern caste-based regional parties have simultaneously weakened. RJD's vote share in Bihar has fluctuated between 15.68 per cent and 22.62 per cent, between the 2019 Lok Sabha and 2020 assembly elections, while JD(U) gathered 22.26 per cent vote share in 2019. In Uttar Pradesh, the Samajwadi Party's vote share declined from 22.35 per cent in 2014 to 18.11 per cent in 2019, rebounding somewhat in 2024 with 33.84 per cent and 37 seats. While perceived as a revival of the Yadav-Muslim coalition, this resurgence seemed to have been significantly driven by broader social coalitions and concerns about constitutional rights for marginalised groups. Dalit parties experienced similar contractions, with BSP's share falling dramatically across several northern states. The BJP strategically combined Hindutva, welfare policies, and the co-option of non-dominant OBCs and marginalised Dalits like Pasis, Dhobis, and Khatiks, solidifying its dominance in the region. Southern states: Similar tactics, chequered outcomes In contrast to the shifting dynamics in the north, southern states continue to deepen their commitment to caste-based empowerment, drawing on a long legacy of social reform. Anchored in movements like the Dravidian self-respect movement led by Periyar in Tamil Nadu, the South's approach to identity politics remains rooted in historical struggles for dignity, representation and social justice. This enduring ideological foundation has shaped a distinct and assertive regional stance on caste enumeration and reservation policies. Tamil Nadu's unanimous assembly resolution in June 2024, urging the Union Government to conduct a caste census, explicitly invoked the principles of equal rights and equitable access to education, employment, and economic opportunity. Alongside, the state continues to grapple with calls to reinstate the 10.5 per cent Vanniyar quota within the Most Backward Caste category — struck down by the courts — underscoring the layered and ongoing negotiations around identity-based entitlements. In Karnataka, the long-delayed release of findings from the Socio-Economic and Educational Survey (SEES) in early 2024 reignited caste-based contestations. The report proposed increasing OBC reservations from 32 per cent to 51 per cent, reclassifying Kurubas as 'most backward', and extending the creamy layer criterion across Category I castes. The data prompted swift backlash from dominant caste groups like the Vokkaligas and Veerashaiva-Lingayats, who alleged underrepresentation, highlighting the complex terrain of caste enumeration, political accommodation, and social perception. Further, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh witnessed judicial intervention reshaping Dalit politics. In August 2024, the Supreme Court upheld the sub-categorisation of Scheduled Castes, acknowledging that the Madigas have historically faced greater disadvantages than Malas. While legally validating differentiated access to reservation, the verdict has reopened debates around intra-Dalit equity and risks fracturing existing solidarities. Meanwhile, the Telangana Assembly passed a bill raising OBC reservations to 42 per cent, citing recent caste survey data that estimated OBCs constitute 56.36 per cent of the state's population. Taken together, these developments reflect the South's continued structural engagement with caste, not merely as electoral arithmetic, but as a tool for reimagining equitable access and political representation. This stands in sharp contrast to the increasingly symbolic and depoliticised caste engagements that dominate the contemporary political landscape of the northern states. Can progressive subaltern parties in both the North and South effectively mobilise and articulate a discourse centred on genuine empowerment, rights, and agency, irrespective of the BJP's ascendancy and varying positions on the caste census? Achieving this would require subaltern parties to construct broader, inclusive social coalitions while clearly communicating a narrative of empowerment rooted in structural reform. The success of such mobilisation hinges on their ability to convincingly present democratic alternatives to welfare schemes that, while expansive, are often detached from a rights-based framework and shaped more by political expediency than structural justice. Karthik K R is a postdoctoral research fellow of Indian and Indonesian politics at the Royal Netherlands Institute of Southeast Asian and Caribbean Studies, Leiden, Bendre is a Senior Research Associate at the MIT School of Government, Pune, and Vyavahare is in Leadership and Government at the MIT School of Government, Pune
The Hindu
22-05-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
Telangana Expert Group finalises method for measuring caste-based disparities from the caste survey
The Telangana government's Expert Working Group, led by retired Supreme Court judge Justice Sudarshan Reddy, has decided to present as an ordinal ranking, indicating the relative backwardness of each sub-caste while measuring social and economic disparities among the downtrodden. The Working Group constituted by the government was tasked with studying and interpreting the extensive data collected through the 2024 Social Education Employment Economic Political Caste (SEEEPC) Survey. The group, which met in New Delhi on Thursday (May 22, 2025) for its fourth meeting, decided to finalise the methodology for measuring social and economic disparities across sub-castes in the State using a Composite Backwardness Index (CBI). The CBI will provide a numerical and objective score for each sub-caste, derived using 43 key parameters from the SEEEPC data. These parameters span seven categories — social status, education, living standards, occupation, income, assets (movable and immovable), and access to banking and finance. The data will be analysed separately for rural and urban areas to study subtle disparities. The approach builds upon the methodology used by the Mandal Commission, which relied on just 11 parameters. The group has also urged the government to develop a natural language interface powered by Artificial Intelligence to allow researchers to interact with the SEEEPC dataset in aggregate form, without compromising individual privacy. This would enable broader academic and policy analysis based on one of India's most detailed socio-economic datasets, the meeting felt. After three meetings in Hyderabad, the meeting in New Delhi marked a key milestone as the group reached a consensus on the statistical model and framework of the CBI. The next and final meeting of the Expert Group will be held soon to approve the report and finalise its submission. The SEEEPC Survey is a pioneering effort covering 3.55 crore individuals across 243 sub-castes. Of the 243 sub-castes enumerated, 73 sub-castes make up 96% of Telangana's population, including ten Scheduled Castes (SCs), seven Scheduled Tribes (STs), 45 Backward Classes (BCs), and eleven Other Castes (OCs). The survey also provided the option of 'No Caste' and 'Others' for those not fitting into existing classifications. The Expert Group comprises nine full-time members and several special invitees, experts in sociology, economics, caste studies, history, law, policy, statistics, and related domains, all serving in an honorary capacity.
Indian Express
22-05-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
Telangana govt's expert group to formulate first-of-its-kind ‘Composite Backwardness Index'
The Telangana government's expert working group has decided to formulate a first-of-its-kind 'Composite Backwardness Index' using the caste census data to measure disparities across the 243 sub-castes enumerated in the survey. The expert working group, constituted by the Telangana government on March 7 this year under the chairmanship of Justice Sudarshan Reddy (Retd.), met here to discuss and analyse data collected under the caste survey conducted in the state. The survey was formulated to study, analyse and interpret data collected under the Social Education Employment Economic Political Caste (SEEEPC) Survey of 2024. Drawing inspiration from the principles enshrined in the Constitution, the expert working group will formulate a 'Composite Backwardness Index' for each of the sub-castes of Telangana. Praveen Chakravarty, the convenor of the expert working group, said the 'Composite Backwardness Index' will be a numerical and objective measure of the relative backwardness of each sub-caste computed through a quartile based statistical analysis using all parameters of the SEEEPC data. He said the expert group will use up to 43 parameters split between rural and urban areas under seven categories namely social, education, living standards, occupation, income, movable and immovable assets and access to banking and finance to compute a holistic measure of backwardness. It may be recalled that the Mandal Commission report used 11 parameters to compute relative backwardness of sub-castes. Chakravarty said the expert group has finished statistical and data work and had a detailed discussion of the findings of the Composite Backwardness Index (CBI) in its meeting today. 'There was a consensus agreement on the CBI method, the parameters used for analysis, the graphical representation and the larger findings. The expert group will move to the next phase of drafting of the report and expects to submit the report to the government of Telangana in a month's time or before,' he added. The report will present as ordinal ranking of relative backwardness of each sub-caste based on the CBI score as well as ranking of each sub-caste on each of the seven categories and parameters used for evaluation, said Chakravarty. The expert group's next meeting will be held soon for discussion and approval of the final report. The expert group has also recommended that the Telangana government provide a natural language interface using Artificial Intelligence to the SEEEPC dataset in aggregate form without revealing any household specific information and make it available for further analysis for the larger research fraternity. The expert group consists of nine full-time members and other special invitees with expertise in sociology, caste studies, history, policy, law, economics, statistics and other domains who are working in an honorary capacity to prepare a report of their findings of the SEEEPC survey. The expert group's earlier three meetings were held in Hyderabad. The Telangana 2024 SEEEPC exercise is a robust survey of 3.55 crore people with 75 fields of information about each person covering social, economic, educational, identity, occupational and living aspects of their daily lives. It enumerates people across 243 sub-castes and an option of 'No Caste' for those who do not wish to divulge and 'Others' for those who do not fall into any of the sub-castes listed in the enumeration manual. The survey methodology is rigorous and scientific, making this one of the largest such exercises involving caste identities in the history of independent India. This dataset provides very rich and granular information of disparities across various social groups and its potential causes. Of the 243 sub-castes, 73 sub-castes constitute 96 per cent of the entire population of Telangana, the survey said. These include ten sub-castes of Scheduled Castes, seven sub-castes of Scheduled Tribes, 45 sub-castes of Backward Classes and eleven sub-castes of Other Castes.
