Religion based

Management quota

Gender based

State of domiciles

Caste based
 After Independence, the First Backward Class Commission in 1953 headed by Kaka Kalekar, a Gandhian,
faced a major handicap because of a lack of accurate population estimates. The last census ever done at the
basis of caste was in 1931 and it determined that OBCs formed 52% of the population. Without any rational
basis for its recommendation, the Kalekar Commission drew up a list of 2,399backward castes and communities
and classified 837 groups as most backward. It stunned the then government headed by Jawaharlal Nehru by
recommending a 70 percent reservation of seats in all technical and professional institutions apart from
substantial reservations for government jobs. The government refuse to accept the recommendations with Nehru
coming out strongly against any move to divide the nations on the basis of castes.
The second Backward Commission formed in 1979 and headed by B.P.Mandal, a former Bihar chief minister and
an MP, was again hampered by a lack of figures. The Mandal Commission, as it came to be famously known
bolstered its deductions with extensive field surveys apart from Getting the census department to make
extrapolations based on the 1931 census. It pruned the OBC list down to 2,052 and recommended a reservation
of 27 percent for OBC`s to all government services as well as technical and professional institutions both at the
Center and State level.

1979-Mandal Commission was established to assess the situation of the socially and
educationally backward.[5] The commission didn't have exact figures for a sub-caste,
known as the Other Backward Class(OBC), and used the 1930[6] census data, further
classifying 1,257 communities as backward, to estimate the OBC population at 52%.[6]
FACTS ON RESERVATION
Here are some facts and statistics which clearly indicate the failure of the policy of reservation:
Percentage of literacy among Scheduled Castes is 37 %
High school drop out rate in SCs is 80 %
Number of government jobs lying vacant under the quota is 1 lakh.
50% SC/ST seats are vacant in IITs. Out of remaining 50%, one fourth fail to get the degree even in 6 years
Half of the undergraduate seats are lying vacant in Delhi University under quota for SCs
Landlords (Yadavs etc.) and Millionaires (Jewellers Suniare ) are also considered as backwards/OBC.
According to the NSSO - which is a government appointed body - 23.5 per cent of the college seats are already
with the OBCs.
Former president KR Narayanans daughter secured her entry into the Indian Foreign Service via SC reservation.
Does president of India need Affirmative Action??
Although Sikhism, Buddhism, and ISLAM strictly forbid caste system, fake caste order is created in these religions
to extend reservation.
If the reservation given on the basis of below poverty line or laborer class and small farmers they will get the
benefits like that on the basis of population (a study of NSS data):
1. Upper castes 3%, 2.Muslim: 19%, 3.Lower OBC Castes60%, 4.SC/CT:18% If the reservation given on economic
basis the poor OBC, Muslim and SC/ST will get more reservation in comparison of existing reservation policy. And
benefits will reach the needy people.
No Data exist to establish the total percentage of OBCs in Indian population, as the OBCs don really exist on caste
basis. There are castes which fall OBC category in one state and general category in another state.
There has been a constant increase in the number of Backward Castes during last 59 years of independence
despite the policy of Reservation. Starting from less than 100, number of listed Backward/Dalit Castes has reached
a whooping number of 3743.
indian Government now Indian law provides for a quota system whereby a
percentage of posts are reserved in employment in Government and in the
public sector units, and in all public and private educational institutions,
except in the religious/ linguistic minority educational institutions, in order to
mitigate backwardness of the socially and educationally backward
communities and the Scheduled Castes and Tribes who do not have adequate
representation in these services and institutions. The reservation policy is
also extended to the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes for
representation in the Parliament of India. The central government of India
reserves 27% of higher education, and individual states may legislate further
reservations. Reservation cannot be exceeded 50%, as per the rulings given
by the supreme court, but certain Indian states like Rajasthan have proposed
a 68 % reservation which includes a 14% reservation for forward castes.[
Present practice
 THE FACTS
1. There is existing social inequality in India. There are some who
get less opportunities.
2. Affirmative action is needed to benefit this lot of people and bring
them out of their poverty
3. Reservations have a great potential

Social change

Reservations have as yet failed in their goal.

 HAVE RESERVATIONS REALLY
FAILED THEIR PURPOSE?
• In 1953, the Kaka Kalelkar commission found 2399
castes and communities to be backward
• In 1989, the Mandal Commission found that the number
had been increased to 3743
• In 2005, the number was found to be 4418

The number of backward castes have only increased

Not a SINGLE community has been taken off

the backward list!!!
 BUT WHY?
The founding fathers of our nation predicted that
reservations would be required for just 15 years.

Reservations have been in place for 60 years now, and

have permeated all spheres of modern society.

Now three generations have elapsed, yet reservations

seem to be just increasing, instead of being phased out.
Who should benefit from reservations?
INHERENT TALENT + OPPORTUNITIES = SUCCESS

Presence of Lack of
merit opportunity

These are the people you want to benefit

 AT THE POST-GRADUATE LEVEL

SUCCESS

Same environment

4 YEARS
4 YEARS

OPEN RESERVED
CATEGORY
Same teachers CATEGORY

Same books
 NOW THE REAL PICTURE…

BRIGHT QUALITY
YOUNG HIGHER
STUDENT QUALITY PRIMARY EDUCATION EDUCATION
 DEMANDS
(A) Immediate:
1.Review the provisions of the Mandal Commission
• The Mandal Commission report is more than 26 years old now.
• The statistics are 75 years old!
• India has gone through a sea change in just the last 15 years
• Fragments society into different castes, and does not look at
individuals as individuals

• “Castes/classes where participation of females in work is at

least 25% above the state average” are backward classes
 The government must prove
that the Mandal commission
has worked, and will continue
to work
 DEMANDS
(A) Immediate:
2. Review by an apolitical representative commission
• Politicians cannot be trusted; Too many vested interests
• Must include intellectuals from all sections of society
• Must review the need and effect of reservations every 5 years

Will ensure that reservations are applied

efficiently, appropriately and keeping the
benefit of the Indian nation in mind
 DEMANDS
(B) Short term:
1. No reservations at the post-graduate level
• As explained above
 DEMANDS
(B) Short term:
2. Reservations have no place in institutions of excellence
• Their purpose is for cutting edge technology and development,
which is only possible if merit is not compromised
• These institutions will be accessible to only those with
demonstrated merit, whichever section of society they may
belong to.
 DEMANDS
(B) Short term:
3. Reserved category students avail of reserved seats only:
• Will ensure adequate representation of backward sections
• At the same time, seats available to the open category are not
compromised
• Currently, 20% of open category seats are taken up by reserved

category students
 DEMANDS
(C) Long term:
1. Improve quality of basic education:
• This is the only means of meaningful social uplift
• All the other methods are merely cosmetic, and temporary
 SUGGESTIONS
1. Commission must specify criteria for reservations:
• The criteria must be very specific, based on current data
• Individuals without merit OR without lack of opportunities MUST

be kept out through specific, verifiable criteria

• System of anonymous appeal and stringent punishment against

those misusing reservations through false documentation

 SUGGESTIONS

2. Have a cut-off for the reserved category as well:

 Good results

Bad results

Good results Bad results

Results at the graduate level

Cut-off point
Clustering of
bad results

Results at the entrance level

Ineligible for
reservations
THE AFFIRMATIVE ACTION MODEL

Merit
20%
Socio-
economic
situation

80%
 IN CONCLUSION
• We are NOT against reservations

• We are NOT against those who require and deserve

reservations

• We ARE against those who misuse and abuse reservations

in spite of not deserving them, nor requiring them

• We ARE against those who play the caste card for their
vested interests
 Let us come
together and make
an India, that looks
at individuals not as
members of any
particular caste, but
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