Creamy layer to get quota benefits

The Govt decides against splitting quota benefits between the creamy and non-creamy layers, reports Aloke Tikku.

The government on Thursday decided against splitting OBCs into creamy and non-creamy layers for OBC reservation to central government-aided educational institutions.

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Parliamentary affairs minister PR Dasmunsi said the Union Cabinet favoured the "straitjacket" 27 per cent OBC reservation formula. The government intends to have the legislation passed in the Winter Session if there are no major disruptions, he added.

The parliamentary standing committee had asked the government to amend the Central Educational Institutions (Reservation in Admissions) Bill to give preference to non-creamy layer among the OBC in reservation and let the well-off OBCs benefit from quotas only if there were vacant seats.

The panel’s recommendation was patterned on the Veerappa Moily-chaired oversight committee that was tasked to chalk out the roadmap for implementing OBC reservations.

Dasmunsi said the Union Cabinet decided to stick to the original bill introduced in Parliament on August 2 "without any confusion" over the creamy layer.

The minister indicated that the government had only accepted some minor changes to the legislation pending in the Rajya Sabha to correct the language.

While Left parties favoured exclusion of creamy layer from the quota ambit in order to reach the reservation benefit to the really deserving, UPA allies like DMK, PMK and Lok Janshakti Party have strongly opposed exclusion.