• India
  • Nov 26

Centre to review Rs 8 lakh annual income criteria for EWS quota

• The Centre told the Supreme Court that the counselling for the NEET postgraduate medical courses will be further postponed by four weeks as it has decided to revisit Rs 8 lakh annual income criteria for determining the Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) category for reservation in the admissions.

• Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told the top court that a committee will be constituted to determine the criteria scientifically for the EWS category and the exercise would be completed in four weeks.

• The Union government has taken a considered decision to revisit the criteria for determining the economically weaker sections in terms of the provisions of the explanation to Article 15 of the Constitution inserted by the Constitution (103rd Amendment) Act, 2019.

What is the case about?

• The SC was hearing a batch of pleas challenging the Centre and Medical Counselling Committee (MCC) July 29 notice providing 27 per cent reservation for Other Backward Class (OBC) and 10 per cent for EWS category in the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) admissions for medical courses.

• The top court asked whether any exercise was undertaken before fixing a limit of Rs 8 lakh annual income for determining the EWS category.

• It asked whether Major Gen (retd) SR Sinho Commission Report of 2010 was considered before ascertaining the criteria. Major Gen (retd) SR Sinho Commission was constituted by the UPA government in 2010 and has recommended welfare measures for the EWS category.

• Additional Solicitor General K.M. Nataraj, appearing for Centre, said that the commission’s report was one of the basis for determining the criteria but after that several deliberations were held and other factors were also taken into account.

• The bench said that the only question is that determination of the category should be in a scientific manner and it appreciates that the Centre has taken a decision to revisit the criteria earlier fixed.

Constitutional provisions

Article 15(4): Empowers the government to make special provisions for advancement of backward classes.

Article 16(4): Makes a provision for the reservation of appointments or posts in favour of any backward class of citizens. 

Article 46: Promotes the educational and economic interests of SCs, STs and other weaker sections of society and protects them from social injustice and exploitation.

In order to provide benefits to students belonging to the EWS category in admission to higher educational institutions, a Constitutional amendment was made in January 2019, which enabled the provision of 10 per cent reservation for the category.

In January 2019, the Parliament cleared the Constitution (One Hundred And Twenty-Fourth Amendment) Bill, 2019 and it was signed by President Ram Nath Kovind and became the Constitution (One Hundred and Third Amendment) Act, 2019.

New clause 6 was inserted in Article 15 (Prohibition of discrimination on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth).

New clause 6 was inserted in Article 16 (Equality of opportunity in matters of public employment).

Additional read:

Evolution of reservation system for Backward Classes

Reservation for Backward Classes (BCs) was introduced even many years before Independence in most of the area comprising the presidencies and princely states south of the Vindhyas. The process gathered momentum in course of the censuses from 1881 to 1941. The Indian Constitution through the Preamble envisages the Indian Republic to achieve the objective of securing to its citizens social, economic and political justice, liberty, equality and fraternity. It also elaborates the methodology to be followed for reaching this goal of social justice.

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