10% Reservation: Jumla in the Death Overs

With just 100 days remaining in the 2019 general elections, PM Narendra Modi has come out with his new master jumla of providing 10% reservation to the Economically Weaker Sections (EWC) of the upper class society. According to the 124 amendment bill of the constitution, all general class people earning less than 8 lacs rupees annually, owning agricultural land less than 5 hectare, residing in houses less than 1000sqft and owning land less than 100 yard in a notified municipal area will fall under the new provision.

Till now 50% of the seats were being reserved in the government jobs and admission in higher educational institutions where the SCs, STs and OBCs were comprising with the ratio of 15%, 7.5% and 27% respectively. With the arrival of this new provision the reservation quota has moved to around 60% violating the supreme court laws.

As per the supreme court of India, the reservation quota cant extend the limit of 50%, but with the arrival of general elections, for its own selfish reasons the government has eventually decided to amend the articles 15 and 16 of the Indian constitution.

Two months ago when KCR came up with the 12% reservations quota for the Muslim community, BJP President Amit Shah criticized by saying the parliament can’t exceed the limit of 50% set by the apex court of India. But now the ruling government can be seen overturning its own statements. Before this, Patidars from Gujrat were too provided with 10% of reservation initially, but were later denied as the high court refused to grant them.

It is not for the first time that a demand of reservations for the generals has been raised. IN 1991 the same issue broke the news where the 9 member bench of supreme court refused to the same idea, thus stating it as a violation of the constitutional laws.

The Indian constitution nowhere offer reservations on the basis of social or economic background. The constitution provides reservation facilities only to those people who were denied of basic education and jobs in the government sector in the past. Though if we see rationally, poor of upper caste deserves more freebies than the creamy layer of the SCs, STs and the OBCs of the modern day. But the question which now comes on the big screen is, till what extent the new amendment brought by the government is valid?

Firstly, on the basis of the financial line set by the government, 90% of the general category qualifies for the reserved seats. Secondly, most of the people falling under this category are the people belonging to the agrarian sector who don’t have a fix income. If there is a good crop their income may go up beyond the fixed mark, but in case of a drought or a famine, they have to compromise on a lesser figure too. So with these fluctuating stats, how will the government manage to satisfy such a large number of people!

Even if the government has agreed on providing 10% of reservation, where are the jobs? When there are no jobs in the market, how the reservation policies are going to be implemented?

After all this, more than 70% of the country’s total population now fall under the benefitting line. Will it do the justice with the rest 30% people?

In my views reservation is not the permanent solution to a social and economic problem of the country. All these problems comes out due to the financial incapacity. To fight with this, instead of providing with reservations to the people the government should rather release scholarships, provide the needy ones with educational loans, construct skill based schools and programmes which will further promote a skillful society and a equal platform for all the citizens of the country.