Malik, Dr Jitendra hail decisions
SC, STs get reservations in promotions
Sanjeev Pargal
JAMMU, Feb 20: The Union Cabinet has approved the State Government proposal to grant 10 percent reservations to Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) among general casters and reservations in promotions to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (SC & STs) by adopting a proposal approved by the State Government.
Official sources told the Excelsior that both the proposals were approved by the Union Cabinet at its meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
With this, the State of Jammu and Kashmir has come at par with the country to grant 10 percent reservations to the EWS among upper castes, a historic decision taken by Narendra Modi Government last month.
Reservations for EWS to unreserved categories were approved by the State Administrative Council (SAC) headed by Governor Satya Pal Malik few days back and sent to the Union Cabinet for approval. Simultaneously, the SAC had also approved reservations in promotions to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes and forwarded the proposal to the Central Government for approval.
“The Union Cabinet has cleared both the proposals of the Central Government, leading to implementation of 10 percent reservations to EWS among upper castes and reservations in promotions to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes,” sources said.
The SAC has already cleared the proposal bringing people living on the International Border under three percent reservation category of ‘ALC quota’, which was earlier applicable only to the people living on the Line of Control (LoC).
The Constitution’s (Seventy Seventh Amendment) Act, 1995 provides for giving benefit of promotion in service to the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes and the Constitution (One Hundred and Third Amendment) Act, 2019 provides for giving reservations in admission in educational institutions and for appointments and posts in favour of economically weaker sections of the citizens.
“Both these amendments in the Constitution of India were not applicable to the State of Jammu and Kashmir in the present form. The Union Cabinet’s approval to the extension of these amendments will enable providing of 10 percent reservation in admission in educational institutions and for appointments and posts in favour of the economically weaker sections of the citizens. This will also give powers to the State for making provisions for reservation in the matters of promotion to any class or classes of posts in the services under the State in favour of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes,” sources said.
Meanwhile, Governor Satya Pal Malik has welcomed the decision of the Union Cabinet regarding giving reservations in admission in educational institutions, for appointments and posts in favour of economically weaker sections of the citizens and giving benefit of promotion in service to the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes.
“The reservation to the economically weaker sections of the citizens will be in addition to existing reservation and subject to maximum of 10 percent of total seats/posts,” Malik said.
He described these decisions as having far reaching consequences in helping to ameliorate the lot of the weaker sections of society and in ensuring their economic progress and prosperity.
Meanwhile, Union Minister of State in PMO, Dr Jitendra Singh has also hailed the decision of the Union Cabinet under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to approve for the State of Jammu & Kashmir, implementation of the provision of 10 per cent reservation for Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) as well as the provision for reservation in promotion for Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs).
Dr Jitendra Singh welcomed the Government’s decision to provide reservation to the residents of International Border (IB) at par with LoC. This, he said, will end an injustice meted out by the past Governments which had tended to discriminate between one section of border residents and the other section of the border residents, purely on the vote bank consideration. This was also a long standing demand of the people living, particularly in Kathua and Samba districts, he added.
Dr Jitendra Singh said that these decisions of the Union Cabinet will enable the State of Jammu & Kashmir to take the benefit of revolutionary reforms introduced by the Modi Government.
While 10% reservation for Economically Weaker Sections will give the benefit of job reservation to those candidates who are deserving because of their lower economic strata. Similarly, reservation in promotion for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes will help addressing a section of society which had been long struggling for it.
While thanking the Union Cabinet for both the decisions with regard to Jammu & Kashmir, Dr Jitendra Singh said, these decisions are undoubtedly the result of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s extremely sensitive concern for this peripheral State and added that in the last 65 years, no earlier Government had ever taken an initiative on these lines and even now these decisions have come forth in the interest of Jammu & Kashmir because of the Modi Government being at the helm at the Centre.
Dr Jitendra Singh hoped that the State of Jammu & Kashmir, which has been at the receiving end of a protracted nightmare of militancy, will receive a path-breaking benefit from these decisions. He said, these two decisions are a part of the continuation of series of decisions taken by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the last five years, in a bid to bring Jammu & Kashmir at par with the other States of India. He recalled that the highest-ever Prime Minister’s package of Rs 80,000 crore was granted to Jammu & Kashmir by Narendra Modi and even in his most recent visit to the State on 3rd February, he launched projects worth Rs.5,000 crore.
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