Rajasthan govt jumps 50% bar, quota now at 68%

Jaipur: The Rajasthan Assembly on Tuesday passed separate bills providing five per cent reservation to Gujjars and other communities under Special Backward Classes (SBC) and for 14 per cent quota to Economically Backward Classes (EBC) of unreserved categories.

The House also passed resolutions requesting the state government to make efforts to get both the bills ? Rajasthan Special Backward Classes (Reservation of Seats in Educational Institutes in the State and of Appointments and Posts in Services under the State) Bill 2015 and Rajasthan Economically Backward Classes (Reservation of Seats in Educational Institutes in the State and of Appointments and Posts in Services under the State) Bill 2015 - ?included in the Ninth Schedule of the Constitution.

Five communities namely Banjara/Baldiya/Labana, Gadiya Lohar/Gadoliya, Gujar/Gurjar, Raika/Rebari/Debasi and Gadariya/Gadri/Gayari have been included in the bill for 5 per cent quota under SBC.

Both the bills will exceed the permissible legal limit of reservation in the state as the reservation under SC, ST and OBC categories will remain unchanged.

Vasundhara Raje-led previous BJP government had in 2008 passed a bill providing 5 per cent reservation to SBC and 14 per cent to EBC but it was stayed by the high court. This time the government decided to bring in separate bills for both the categories.

"The state government will also make full efforts to get the bills included in ninth schedule of the Constitution," Home Minister Gulab Chand Kataria said in the House.

He said that in the opinion of the state government, the bills were necessary for "upliftment and advancement" of backward communities and financially weaker sections of unreserved categories.

He said certain backward classes need special treatment so that they can improve their condition and therefore, the state government decided to provide them five per cent quota under SBC.

A large percentage of the state's population that suffered due to social and educational backwardness for many years has started enjoying the fruits of the reservation policy and has been able to improve its standard, whereas poorest classes of unreserved categories are unable to compete with other affluent classes, he said.