The Chhattisgarh Assembly on November 2 unanimously passed two amendment bills related to reservation in government jobs and admission in educational institutions in proportion to the population of different categories, taking the total quota in the state to 76%.
The Chhattisgarh Public Service (Scheduled Caste, Scheduled Tribes, and Other Backward Classes Reservation) Amendment Bill and Chhattisgarh Educational Institutions (Reservation in admission) Amendment Bill were tabled in the assembly by Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel.
As per the bills, Scheduled Tribes (STs) will get a quota of 32 %, Other Backward Classes (OBCs) 27 %, Scheduled Caste (SC) 13 %, while 4 % has been provisioned for Economically Weaker Section (EWS) in public employment and admissions in educational institutions.
The Chief Minister said that the previous BJP governments could not form a Quantifiable Data Commission, which his government constituted in 2019 to survey people belonging to OBC and EWS categories in the state.
The COVID-19 pandemic delayed the commission’s process, he added.
The commission recently submitted its recommendations to the state government, according to which the state’s population includes 42.41% OBCs and 3.48 % EWSs.
Baghel also stated that the census has not been carried out in the country after 2011, and reservations for SCs can be amended accordingly when the exercise is done.
Earlier in September last year, the Chhattisgarh High Court set aside the Raman Singh-headed state government’s 2012 order to raise the quota to 58% in government jobs and admissions in educational institutions. The court had said reservation exceeding the 50% ceiling was unconstitutional.
After passing the bills, Baghel brought a resolution urging the Union government to take necessary steps to enlist the two amendment bills under the 9th Schedule of the Constitution.
