Friday, December 18, 2009

Understanding the OBC quota

For a long time, I have been juggling with two words "OBC quota". I have been trying to understand What does it actually mean and how will it influence everybody? How would it influence the beneficiaries , disadvantaged , benefactors and the neutral class? The neutral class certainly seems to be comprising of SC/STs. And the beneficiaries, disadvantaged and benefectors may seem to be OBCs, left out Upper castes and the politicians.
I have been restraining myself to comment on this issue, still trying to understand deeper links of this phenomena.
But now I am writing whatever i have absorbed from different permutations and combinations relating each other to this issue.
Though I still feel OBC quota has too many loop holes to make it reality. OBC quota could have been great boon to this developing country by helping all those who have been left out of the growth scene.
But it certainly proved out to be an important initiative in other sense . It has made the growing class to rethink on the issue of castes and caste system and re-evaluate their stand. With only SC/ST quota in place, they have been promptly relating everything related to SC/STs or Dalits to the quota provided to them. And viceversa , everything related to reservation was used to put the blame on to the SC/STs without trying to think the cause.
And till now they have been successful in isolating a certain class on the name of reservation. Even without reservation , they would have felt uneasy in including them to the mainstream on the name of popular customs and tradition. So they were successful in implementing this ideological phrase into action  "You remain happy with your quota, We are happy and accustomed to isolating you like your previous generations but from time to time, we would blame everything on you. ". But the monotony is broken now. They have been forced to look at this issue to the extent they never ignore. Now with reservation level rising to the waist, and not feet (sc/st reservation), the mouth is shouting , yelling and growling.
The mouth would continue to utter abuses till the head realizes that it is their rising mass and volume which is making the water rise up. And if they would have not grown that much, they would have drowned in it.
Reminder: It is not the war of the poor , by the poor or for the poor. It is war of growth. The poor has long back learnt to live like benthic organism unaffected by whatever happening above him.
Only the feet of others bother him and not the level of water.
With OBC reservation, the upper class/growing class is worried of its own growth.
I agree that 50% reservation is harsh but with this kind of severity, the growing class  may realize their mistake they did'nt realize when they had 22% reservation in front. Though it was to include the part of population into the mainstream but it gave the society another reason to isolate them, but surely they can't ignore and isolate more than 50% of the population on the name of quota now. Then they were enjoying the support of majority but now majority is against them to make them realize their mistake. After the income and least cut off cap on OBC quota, it may not benefit OBCs to a great extent, but it certainly has overturned the coin in the favour of deprived and victims. Now SC/STs have got the much needed support and freedom from chains of isolation. Now they know with almost 50% population branded as reserved, the racists/casteists can't bank upon the reason of reservation to victimize them. And true skin of the racists would be visible who were previously wearing the veil called anti-reservation. Certainly, this reservation can do more good to SC/STs then thought. It is the high time that society should rethink of its inherent major problems and not neglect them to appease themselves or it might lead to their isolation. The isolation of casteists be it on the grounds of reservation or the fake ideology they support is much needed. But certainly self realization is better than any kind of isolation, punishment or reverse-discrimination. The misguided growing class has to realize that humanity has to come before anything and they can't escape after exploiting humanity on the name of false culture.
The goverment may seem to be benefiting by the votes on the name of reservation and full support by the Parliament on this issue may seem to be appeasement or vote retaining. The government has also brought unknown consequences along with it. Politics has always been based on castes and its not that politicians have asked votes on the name of OBCs or SC/STs , the politicians have always asked for votes from their own particular castes first. A reddy leader has always been going to reddy dominant villages/places, A Rajput to Rajput dominant and so and so. And no reservation be it OBC is able to change that even if you call it game of votes.
SC/STs have always been treated seperatly or call it isolated. While other people in India are either Sharmas, Gujjars, Chaudharys, Jats etc, SC/STs have always been SC/STs or dalits before that or Shudras/Ati-shudras before that.
Who knows OBC reservation might bring some integration of Indian society ? people might forget what caste he may belong to and then at that time reservation may serve a bigger purpose.  I am not saying reservation is just because of dis-integration in the society and its has the purpose to dissolve it. But, if thats possible, we would need no more caste reservation then as the castes would have been dissolved into less-disintegrated groups OBC / SC/ST and general.
But today is very different , even if we remove the reservation from the constitution, the words like SC/ST ,dalits, castes would never be removed and for the society dalits would remain dalits.
But all this could have been better if OBC quota would have served its immediate purpose in an effective way. There are many irregularities and loop holes which are needed to be considered about OBC quota, In its current form, it can be described as political quota having consequences unknown to the political class.
Currently OBC list is vague and not like SC/ST list which is quite clearly described in our constitution.
OBC list even before reservation has been plagued by the game of power and politics.
OBC refers to Other Backward Class. As it Class and not caste which many think it to be, it contains mainy different castes from different religions. Among Hindus, It primarily consists of those castes which were referred to Shudras in scriptures. They were actual peasant or working class which didn't enjoy high social status. They shouldn't be confused with the dalits or ati-shudras or outcastes. But with time, many such castes grew out of the control of social hierarchy and became very prominent and powerful. Some went on to become even rulers later in history. From past generations it has been found out that these castes were most forward in exploiting lowest castes [dalits] and exploited them more to gain more social and financial power.
The OBC list could have been refined to benefit the actual needy, it had to include only only who have been left out or more suppressed. The political, social and financial power gained by some of those castes polluted the entire classification of OBC list. They made it a sort of general list including everyone except brahmins, baniyas etc. The social , financial and political power gained by them over the period time enabled them to do so. Currently it contains many castes which historically have claimed to be superior and few castes like Ansaris of Muslims. While this list could have been well used to benefit historically disadvantaged sections like muslims and some socially degraded hindu castes, it has become an instrument to show off political power.
Surely brahmins, baniyas and others excluded from OBC list weren't the only ones to propagate and fiercely practise untouchablity and casteism in India. If this list is refined, it won't reach to the levels of 27%.
Also the reason for OBC quota by political class seems ambiguous to me. It definitely is not aimed at shaking the roots of caste system as OBCs are supposed to be higher castes. It is not aimed at providing exclusive benefit to the needy as the list is much plagued . Certainly it can serve to fill the irregularities in the distribution of resources within the country but in a vague manner.
OBC castes can never be compared to SC/ST on the economic, social or political fronts because there is no known hatred, dis concern prevailing in the society against OBCs like SC/STs ,Even OBCs consider themselves much ahead of dalits in social front, at certain places OBCs are know to have suppressed dalits than other castes. Though there is an extent of educational backwardness among them, but unlike SC/STs who were prohibited or discouraged for amassing wealth or living in the mainstream, the ancestral businesses and assets like land seem to be serving OBC generations well in many cases.
Even in political front OBCs are much ahead, the same OBC list has given many prominent leaders including former PMs and presidents.
Whatever OBC list is for, it is possible that OBCs who once favoured unruly casteist brahmins to define the caste system in India and gave a blind dimension to caste restrictions, now due to OBC reservation may provide much needed awakening of indian society, helping the un-privilidged and we will at last reach the much desired goal of social equality and re-establishment of humanity.

Wednesday, December 9, 2009

Management quota - official facts which you must know.

Here I am quoting the percentage of management quota prevailing in different states of India and rules regarding it to show how lame and ignorant our country becomes when it comes to recognition of caste-quota.

These facts are right on the face of those so called anti-reservationists who are trying to isolate SC/STs like the past generations with a new tool called "Anti-reservation" . I think it is unfortunate as well as depressing that they are able to create a general consensus against specific communities by isolating caste based reservations in India from rest of forms of reservation favouring them.


Orissa

"Pursuant to the judgement of the Hon􀂶ble Supreme Court of India passed in W.P (C) No. 350/
1993, policy guidelines of Government of India on admission of students and charging of fee in
Private Medical and Dental Colleges, Government have been pleased to decide that the Government
quota and Management quata for Private Unaided Medical/Dental Colleges shall be fixed in the ratio
of 50 : 50."
http://orissa.gov.in/govtpress/pdf/2005/955.pdf

Karnataka
"The sharing of seats in respect of Government seats and Management seats.- Having regard to the local needs and notwithstanding anything contained in any law for the time being in force or in any judgement decree or order of any Court or authority, the sharing of seats between the Government and Managements in respect of private aided, un-aided minority and non-minority professional institutions shall be as follows, namely:-

(a) Aided Professional Institutions;
(i) Government seats - Ninety-five percent.
(ii) Management seats - Five percent.

(b) Un-aided Non-minority Professional Institutions,-
(i) Government seats - Seventy five percent.
(ii) Management seats - Twenty five percent.

(c) Un-aided Minority Professional Institutions.
(i) Government seats - Fifty percent.
(ii) Management seats - Fifty percent.

Management seats shall be filled on merit.- The Management seats in non-minority institutions and minority institutions shall be filled on the basis of merit through a Common Entrance Test conducted by the State CET Cell or by Association of Private Professional Colleges. Associations of minority institutions, religious or linguistic may conduct their own Common Entrance Test. The Overseeing Committee shall supervise and ensure that the common entrance tests conducted by the Associations are done in a fair and transparent manner."
http://www.karnataka.gov.in/dpal/pdf_files/SELECTION%20OF%20CANDIDATES%20FOR%20MEDICAL.pdf

Uttar Pradesh
"As per U.P.Technical University Norms(85% of the student are
admitted through the counseling organized by the UPTU based on
the yearly Entrance text namely UPTU-SEE and 15% student are
admitted through the Management quota by the college based on
the UPTU/ AICTE Guideline which lay stress on the Merit.
Further the UPTU follows the Reservation policy as fixed by Govt.
of U. P and passed by UP Legislature."
http://www.iilmpolytechnics.org/files/file/COP_Mandatory_Enclosure.pdf

Kerela
"(2) In every self-financing professional college fifty per cent of the total seats in
each branch shall be Government Quota and the remaining fifty per cent shall be
Management Quota.
(3) Seats in the Government Quota shall be filled up based on counseling by the
Commissioner for Entrance Examinations on the basis of the ranks in the common
entrance examination conducted by him following the principles of reservation as ordered
by the Government from time to time.
(4) Seats in the Management Quota shall be filled up either from the list prepared
on the basis of the Common Entrance Examination conducted by the Commissioner for
Entrance Examinations or from the list prepared on the basis of the common entrance test
conducted by a consortium of a particular type in the State:
Provided that managements shall have the option to earmark not more than 15%
of the seats in the Management Quota to dependents of Non-Resident Indians and in that
case the admission of the candidates shall be made on the basis of the marks they have
obtained in the qualifying examinations."
http://www.kerala.gov.in/dept_highedu/lawdept_1475.pdf.

Tamil Nadu
"Number of seats allotted to different Test Qualified candidates separately [AIEEE/CET (State conducted test/University tests)/Association conducted test] 50% Tamilnadu EngineeringAdmission.
50% Management quota(minority)."
As prescribed by the Govt. of Rajasthan (except in case of Private unaided Institutions and 50% seats in
the self finance course of the aided institutions) the reservation of seats will be made subject to the
prevalent statutory provisions of the State of Rajasthan viz. 16% for SC candidates, 12% for ST
candidates and 21% for candidates belonging to non-creamy layer OBC category.
Provision will also be made for horizontal reservation of 3% for candidates belonging to physically
handicap, 25% for women category and 3% for dependants of Defence Killed/Ex-servicemen / Gallantry
award winners
(i) For Govt. / Govt. Aided Institutions / University Departments:-
Physically Handicapped = 3% of SQ (2.55% of intake)
ESM & their wards & = 3% Horizontal (1% each out of Haryana Open Dependents of Freedom fighters General Category, Scheduled Caste/Backward Class)

(iii) For private unaided Minority institutions –
As per P.A. Inamdar Case minority institutions are free to admit students of their own choice including non minority community as also members of their own community from other State, both to a limited extent only and not in a manner and to such an extent that their minority educational institution status is lost. If they do so they lose the protection of Article 30(1).
i. NRI seats not exceeding upto 15% ( at the discretion of the management as above).
ii. Minority Quota - 42.5% of sanctioned intake fixed by the State Govt. vide notification no. 20/5/2004-4TE dated 25.06.2004.
iii. All India Category- 42.5%
http://techeduhry.nic.in/brochures-09/brochure-be-09/Brochure-BE-09.pdf

Punjab
Governor of Punjab is pleased to direct that ‘Management Quota’ in all the Private Unaided Technical and Management Institutions
(College as well as Polytechnics) shall be 33-1/3% (one third of the total seats) and the remaining 66-2/3% (two third of the total
seats) shall be treated as the “state quota” which must be necessarily filled through the Common Entrance Test to be conducted
by an agency to be designed by the State Government.
The Governor of Punjab is further pleased to direct that out of the “Management Quota” a maximum of 5% of the total
sanctioned seats of an institution shall be filled from amongst Non-Resident Indian (NRI).
http://www.punjabteched.net/jet/prospectus/govt_notifications.pdf

Now many questions arise from this.
Why anti-reservationists have never protested against it, never organized any road protest ?
Are they ignorant ? Why have'nt they put quota for rich before the caste reservation in their agenda ?
Many Anti-reservationists argue about Management quota being just a phenomena of capitalization.
Now more questions arise. Is this how we see our private sector ? Why then people try to associate private sector with so called "merit". Aren't there superior private institutions which have discarded this management quota concept like BITs Pilani ?
Isn't management quota, a form of reservation benefiting mostly our prosperous upper class/caste ?
Can such private institutions selling seats ever provide basic technical facilities to their students ?
Isn't there bigger money game of bribe and corruption in the name of donation going on under the name of management quota?
Can't it be that most such private institutions are owned by powerful people like politicians ?

Isn't it more easier for a non-deserving candidate to get a seat in Management quota than any other quota (by his parents' money of course)?
Can't a zero-scorer candidate get a seat through this?

Where are the courts? Where are those NGO's and people who have constantly put word "reservation" especially SC/ST reservation in the premises of Courts ?
Would it ever stop? etc etc etc........

Thursday, October 1, 2009

The well imbibed Casteism in our social structure needs to be squeezed

There are 4 ways through which people gain knowledge in life.

1. Home is the first school- unfortunately parents are the one who propogate caste discrimination to children through rituals,untouchability, eating, marriages etc.
Childrens learn from elders.
2. Our education system and books have no tangible learning information to enlighten about caste atrocity, remove caste system.
3. Religion - the so called hindu religion is based on the caste discrimination.
4. Society- which openly commits caste atrocity and it is not told as a crime for normal routine.
All the above 4 through which people gain knowledge has not imbibed any social understanding in the so called high caste about caste atrocity.
For most,only aim is to only earn money, so once money comes they may think that all needs are satisfied, cos neither theyyou suffer discrimination, atrocity or exclusion. Money is the only criter for them. But for dalits though they earn some money, they still go through this social evil.
Sc/st reservation is not based on economic status but group status. As all dalits suffer from caste discrimination whether economic well off or worse off. Dalits have reservation for protection against discrimination and social oppression which all dalits face either economically well off or worse off. Best example would be the 27,000 atrocity case registered in which more than 40% are done with the well educated dalits- Go to your local sc commision for more info as they dont put it on net.

post by Naveen Rahul

Striking AIIMS docs live in a glass house -TOI report

The main grouse of AIIMS students - at the forefront of the stir against 27% reservation for OBCs - is that merit is being sacrificed

at the altar of votebank politics. But they forget two things: 25% reservation that AIIMS graduates get in PG admission and the Supreme Court judgment of 2001 that declares the earlier system of 33% reservation for them bad in law.

In fact, the SC, while stating that 33% institutional reservation is "unconstitutional", agreed with the findings of the Delhi High Court, which had earlier set aside the reservation.

The HC had found that "AIIMS students, who had secured as low as 14% or 19% or 22% in the (all-India) entrance examination got admission to PG courses while SC or ST candidates could not secure admission in their 15% or 7% quota in PG courses, in spite of having obtained marks far higher than the in-house candidates of the institute." HC had analysed admission data over five years.

The apex court also agreed with the HC that the "figure of 33% reservation for in-house candidates was statistically so arrived at as to secure 100% reservation for AIIMS students. There were about 40 AIIMS candidates. The PG seats being 120, 33% thereof worked out to be 40." That meant all 40 AIIMS graduates were assured of PG seats.

Merit here was clearly being sacrificed, the study showed. For instance, in the January 1996 session, an AIIMS student with 46.167% marks - lowest for an AIIMS student that year - got PG admission.

However, an SC student with the same grades was admitted but denied coveted course such as obstetrics and gynaecology. The SC student got shunted to community while AIIMS students easily won berths in prestigious disciplines.

Twelve AIIMS candidates were selected even though they got less marks than the SC candidate who secured 60.33% marks. Similarly, 16 AIIMS students got admission to PG courses even though they got less marks than another ST student who got 62.16%.

CREDIT/SOURCE :http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/NEWS/India/Striking-AIIMS-docs-live-in-a-glass-house/articleshow/1543278.cms

 

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