The commission constituted by the State government for identifying the economically weaker sections among non-reserved communities is gearing up to elicit the views of stakeholders as well as those who have opted to remain casteless, transgenders and other similar groups.
Opinions and suggestions of all economically weaker sections, mainly among the forward communities, as well as those who do not figure on the lists of Scheduled Castes, Tribes and Other Backward Communities will be secured for the framing the quota guidelines. “We want to ensure that none of the deserving, mainly the forward communities, are deprived of their due. Those among the economically weaker sections who have not enjoyed the fruits of reservation so far should get what they deserve,” K. Sasidharan Nair who heads the commission told The Hindu .
As per the Central notification, the annual family income in this segment has been pegged at ₹8 lakh. Going by this, even a family earning a monthly income of ₹65,000 would become eligible for the quota. The commission, which is preparing a questionnaire to be placed on the public domain for seeking suggestions of different sections, is likely to put forward a proposal for income slabs so that none is left out of the process.
Central norms
The Central notification has said that a family owning up to 5 acres of agriculture land is eligible forreservation benefit.
The norm that those having a two-cent plot in urban areas and 4.1 cents in panchayats too are eligible does not suit the social conditions in the State.
For, those who got land holdings as per the Kerala Land Reforms Act, 1963, had got 10 cents in rural and 5 cents each in the urban areas.
Data collection
“The commission would seek suggestions from all sections, conduct public hearings and secure the details of the procedures followed in other States for framing the guidelines. Data will be collected from various sources, including Census Department and NEET database. The questionnaire will be posted on the commission website soon,” Mr. Sasidharan Nair said.
