Reservations Are only a Part of Affirmative Action
The meaning of Reservation is an act of making an exception for few."A quota system where percentage of seats are shared in governments (State & Central) and Educational Institutions". It is considered by many as an instrument to uplift the under represented groups in proportion to their general population
Caste reservation has exsisted during pre independence period itself. During Independence period in a struggle to attain freedom ,several sections of the people lost their lives and several of them were severely exploited by the British's .While Framing the Constitution , the Drafting Committee members introduced Reservations to build a common platform for all the people in the nation, It is made as an affirmative action, a positive Discrimination , but after the completion of 60 years of Independence , it can not be considered as an affirmative action. The fact of the matter is that Ambedkar has mentioned in the constitution that the law Pertaining to reservation can be revised every 5 years . This period was routinely extended by the Indian Government, and no revision is undertaken yet. It is time for the political elite to enact new laws or amend old laws by thinking at a wider picture , which will benefit the masses in large numbers as a whole.
% of Reservations in India:
OBC-27%
Sc-15%
ST-7.5%
Women Reservation -33%
Reservation in most states is 50%, which is made constitutional by Supreme Court. But there are few exceptions to this like in states rajasthan & Tamilnadu this limit is exceeded.
Currently in Indian we have three type s of Reservations
- Based on Caste
- Based on Gender(Women)
- State of Domicile(North Eastern States)
Caste Reservation :
Mostly in Educational Institutions and Services (jobs) reservation is provided on the basis of social and Educational backwardness. As a result it is leading to the Quality compromise. The deserved people desires are getting flashed away . Even in this scenario most of our Indian Brains are working in Prestigious institutions at Abroad
As India is one among the fast developing nations , to become a developed nation at the earliest , it has to think in a broader prospective and it should not compromise the quality..
The Reservation Law should be amended in such away that the deserved and talented people (Economically , Physically Backward) should be given the assistance (Material , Non Material Benefits) irrespective of their caste , creed, Gender , region, Religion. The need of the hour is the political action.
Implementing the law from past 60 years , has brought a tremendous change in the lives of the people, though their children became white collar professionals , still the parents are practicing their age old profession , By pointing to it , most politician s are backing OBCs, SC's, ST's as Poor and are inadequately represented in Famous institutions. and services , so they need reservations.
Women Reservation:
Though we have 33% of Women Reservation , their representation is not upto the mark , In loksabha out of 545, only 54 members are women , i.e 10% representation.
So, not only just enacting the laws , a strategic mechanism has to be evolved to implement the exsisting laws.
So there should be Political will, Administrative Skill and Peoples Participation. To achieve any objective.
Conclusion:
It is the right time for the government to take effective measures to enact a generic law to provide reservation (assistance)to the deserved skillful people who are either physically or economically backward. Right Acton at right time takes our nation to a glorious height.
Prathibha Amand
