Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao on Thursday reiterated that the Telangana government will extend reservations like in Tamil Nadu where 69 per cent quota is in vogue in education and employment.
The government will enact a legislation hiking reservations like in Tamil Nadu and send it to Parliament for consideration, Mr. Rao told the Backward Classes Commission headed by B.S. Ramulu which met the former after the panel took office at Ravindra Bharati. The members included V. Krishna Mohan, Juluri Gowrishanker and Anjaneya Gowd.
A release said Mr. Rao advised the commission about the need to increase reservations in Telangana as 80 per cent of the population belonged to weaker sections. The Tamil Nadu government enhanced reservations in proportion to population and referred the matter to the Centre which included the same in the Ninth Schedule of the Constitution by an amendment. The same should be done in the case of Telangana.
The Telangana government will ensure a resolution in the Assembly, hiking the reservations of weaker sections and refer it to Parliament. The State government will convince the Centre to concede the request, he said.
Mr. Rao also said the government was prepared to enhance reservations for Muslims in proportion to their population. The government was in receipt of recommendations by G. Sudhir committee which studied the socio-economic conditions of Muslims. Similarly, the BC Commission must make recommendations about the social and educational backwardness of BCs. The government was committed to extend reservations to Muslims by increasing the quota and without disturbing the benefits already enjoyed by the sub-castes among BCs.
Mr. Rao asked the commission to take up in-depth study of the socio-economic conditions of all caste groups and make recommendations to the government for their uplift.
Some groups in BCs made livelihood out of caste-based occupations while some others were helpless. But, some occupations are on the verge of extinction due to changing lifestyles.
Therefore, the commission must take a decision whether to modernise the waning occupations to suit changing preferences of members of these castes or provide them alternative modes of livelihood. If they were left without any initiative by government, they would be depressed. Mr. Rao impressed on the commission that 50 per cent of the population in Telangana belonged to BCs.
