Rohini Commission is constituted under article 340 of the Indian constitution to check on the issue of Sub Categorization within Other Backward Classes (OBCs) in the Central List.
Understand the details on Sub Categorization of OBCs from the linked article.
Latest Update: Union Government has extended the term of the Justice Rohini Commission until January 31, 2023, to submit its report on the Sub-Categorization of OBCs. This is the 13th extension in a row. The extension was granted in light of the Covid-19 crisis, and the Commission has also requested a consultation with stakeholders and states before the submission of the report. It has also reported repetitions, ambiguities, inconsistencies, and errors in the current Central list of OBCs.
Objectives and Important Aspects of Rohini Commission
- The Commission was constituted under Article 340 of the Indian Constitution on 2nd October 2017, with the approval of the President of India.
- The Commission is headed by G. Rohini, a Retd Chief Justice of Delhi High Court.
- It was appointed to examine the issues on sub-categorization of Other Backward Castes with reference to the following aspects:
- To study the extent of inequitable distribution of benefits of reservation among the castes listed in the broad category of OBC with reference to such classes included in the Central list.
- To devise the parameters, criteria, norms, and mechanisms in a scientific approach for sub-categorization within Other Backward Classes.
- To initiate the task of identifying respective classes, communities, sub-castes, or synonyms from the Central List of Other Backward Classes and categorizing them into respective sub-categories.
- The four-member commission is headed by Justice (Retd.) G. Rohini, Chief Justice (Retd.), Delhi High Court with the other three members being (a) Dr. J.K. Bajaj, Director, Centre for Policy Studies, New Delhi (b) Director, Anthropological Survey of India, Kolkata (ex-officio Member) (c) Registrar General and Census Commissioner, India. (ex-officio Member). Justice G. Rohini, Chairperson of the Commission, belongs to the OBC community.
Advantages of Rohini Commission for OBC Sub-Categorization
Ensure Equitable Distribution of Opportunities:
According to the Mandal Commission Report in 1979, 27% of seats were reserved for OBCs at Central Government Institutions and Public Sector Undertakings. Subcategorization has been proposed within the OBC on an assumption that a lion’s share of the reservation is concentrated on the dominant sections within the caste. Out of the 2,666 communities included in the Central List of OBCs, only a few of them have the advantage of reservation. Therefore, the committee has been set up to ensure a rational division of reservations within the OBC community.
Beneficiaries of the Commission
All the Communities existing in the list of OBCs who have not been able to get any major advantage from the system of reservation in admissions to Central Government Educational Institutions and were not able to secure Central Government jobs can benefit from the implementation of recommendations of the Commission.
National Commission of Backward Classes(NCBC):
NCBC has suggested various recommendations to preserve the quota benefits of the extreme backward section of OBCs. It proposed for subdivision of OBCs into ‘backward’, ‘more backward’, and ‘extremely backward’ blocs and divide 27% quota among them in proportion to their population. The objective of this was to ensure that the dominant sections within the OBCs do not corner the weaker ones and take away their opportunities, profusely. In October 2015, NCBC proposed that a person who belongs to OBC and has an annual family income of up to 15 lakhs should be considered as a minimum ceiling for OBC.In 2008, the Supreme Court ordered the central government to exclude the creamy layer for advanced sections among the OBCs.
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Findings and Recommendations of the Commission
Justice Rohini Commission has proposed a four-category formula for the equitable redistribution of the 27% quota for Other Backward Classes. It has proposed a division of 2, 633 OBC castes in the Central list into four subcategories 1,2,3, and 4 to split the 27% OBC quota reservation.
- Category 1: Category 1 includes 1,674 groups, largely the most disadvantaged groups to receive 2% reservation.
- Category 2 consists of 534 caste groups with a 6% quota reservation
- Category 3 includes 328 caste groups and 9% reservation
- Category 4 comprises 97 caste groups with 10 % reservation
The sub-categorization would ensure that though Category 4 receives the major share, that is, 10 percent of reservation, other categories will also be guaranteed a share.
- In 2018, Rohini Commission analyzed the data of 1.3 lakh central government jobs under the OBC quota and admissions to Central government institutions.
- The findings were:
- 97% of the jobs and admissions at the Central level have gone to 25% of the sub-castes under OBC, and 24.95% of these opportunities have gone to just 10 OBC communities.
- 37 percent of the OBC communities, that is; 983 communities have zero representation in jobs and educational institutions, and 994 sub-castes have a representation of only 2.68 % in admissions and recruitment.
- A number of seats reserved for OBCs were replaced by General Category. Several OBC candidates were marked as “NFS” or None Found Suitable.
- In 2019, the Commission wrote to the government that it is ready with the draft report.
Challenges before the Rohini Commission
- Absence of Data: Many communities lack the data on their population to compare that with the representation in Central Government jobs and admissions.
- Absence of Caste-based surveys: In 2018, the Commission wrote to the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment requesting a budget provision for the All India survey to estimate the caste-wise population of OBC’s.
- Absence of Caste-based data in Census: Home Ministry has announced that data on OBCs will be collected by Census 2021. But there isn’t any progress made on this line.
Read about article Article 340 from the linked article.
About Kaka Kalelkar Commission and Mandal Commission
|
Kaka Kalelkar Commission |
Mandal Commission |
| It is known as the 1st Backward Classes Commission | It is known as the 2nd Backward Classes Commission |
| Established on 29 January 1953 | Established in 1979 |
| Headed by Kaka Kalelkar | Headed by B.P Mandal |
| Determined the criteria for choosing people as ‘Educationally Backward’. | Used eleven social, economic, and educational indicators to determine backwardness |
| Conducted a background study on the conditions of socially and educationally backward classes | Recommended that members of OBC be given 27 percent reservations for jobs under Central Government and Public Sector Undertakings. |
| Submitted the final report on March 30, 1955 | Submitted the report on March 30, 1955
Read more about Mandal Commission in the linked article. |
Overview of Articles 14, 15, and 16 (4)
- Article 14 denies equality before the law. No person shall be treated less favourably since they belong to a particular caste or community
- Article 15 defines the prohibition of discrimination on the grounds of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth. No person shall be denied the right opportunities, social or educational because of a specific caste or community.
- Article 16(4) states that nothing shall prevent the state from making any provision for the reservation of appointments or posts in favour of any background class of citizens which, in the opinion of the state, is not adequately represented in the services under the state.
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