SUB-CATEGORISATION
OF OBCS - POLITY
News:
Rohini panel submits
long-awaited report: what is ‘sub-categorisation’ of OBCs?
What's
in the news?
●
The long awaited report of a commission
set up to examine the sub-categorisation of Other Backward Classes (OBCs) was
submitted to President Droupadi Murmu.
Key
takeaways:
●
The four-member
commission headed by Justice G Rohini, a retired Chief Justice of Delhi
High Court, was appointed on October 2, 2017, and received as many as 13
extensions to its tenure.
Backdrop:
●
OBCs get 27% reservation in central government jobs and admission to
educational institutions.
●
There are more than 2,600 entries in the Central List of OBCs.
Justice
Rohini Commission:
Objective:
●
The commission was set up in recognition
of the perceived distortions in the affirmative action policy, which was seen
as leading to a situation in which a few castes cornered the bulk of benefits
available under the 27% quota for OBCs, and tasked with suggesting corrective
actions.
Terms
of Reference:
●
Examine the extent of inequitable distribution of benefits of reservation among
the castes or communities included in the broad category of OBCs with reference
to such classes included in the Central List.
●
Work
out the mechanism, criteria, norms and parameters in a
scientific approach for sub-categorisation within such OBCs.
●
Take up the exercise of identifying the respective castes or communities or
sub-castes or synonyms in the Central List of OBCs and classifying them into
their respective sub-categories.
●
To study
the various entries in the Central List of OBCs and recommend correction of
any repetitions, ambiguities, inconsistencies and errors of spelling or
transcription.
Findings:
●
In 2018, the commission analysed the data
of 1.3 lakh central government jobs under the OBC quota over the preceding five
years, and OBC admissions to central higher education institutions, including
universities, IITs, NITs, IIMs and AIIMS, over the preceding three years.
●
97%
of all jobs and education seats have gone to 25% of OBC castes,
and 24.95% of these jobs and seats have gone to just 10 OBC communities.
●
As many as 983 OBC communities — 37% of the total — were found to have zero
representation in jobs and educational institutions.
●
994 OBC sub-castes had a representation of
only 2.68% in recruitments and admissions.