Sansad TV Perspective: Defining EWS

In the series Sansad TV Perspective, we bring you an analysis of the discussion featured on the insightful programme ‘Perspective’ on Sansad TV, on various important topics affecting India and also the world. This analysis will help you immensely for the IAS exam, especially the mains exam, where a well-rounded understanding of topics is a prerequisite for writing answers that fetch good marks.

In this article, we feature the discussion on the topic ‘Defining EWS’.

Anchor: Vishal Dahiya

Participants: 

1. Justice Gyan Sudha Mishra, Former Judge Supreme Court
2. Prof. Charan Singh, CEO, EGROW Foundation
3. Subhomoy Bhattacharjee, Consulting Editor, The Business Standard

Context:

A three-member committee has been appointed by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment in order to revisit and assess the criteria for 10% reservation for the Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) in educational institutions and employment under the government. The panel consists of the Finance Secretary, Member Secretary of ICSSR (Indian Council of Social Science Research) and the Principal Economic Advisor.

Background of the Issue:

• The Parliament got together and passed the 103rd Constitutional Amendment Act in the year 2019 that added provisions of 10% reservation for the Economically Weaker Sections apart from the existing reservations.
• This raised enormous concerns among different parts of the society and it was challenged in the court on the grounds of ambiguity in its income criteria for the beneficiaries of the provision. 
• It is alleged to violate the enabling clauses of reservation that in no condition shall exceed 50% as explained in the Indra Sawhney Verdict. This allegation was raised in the petitions challenging the government’s decision to provide a 10% reservation for the EWS category in NEET admissions. As a consequence, the government decided to revisit the criteria to grant reservation under the economically weaker section category.

Concerns surrounding the EWS:

• Reservation under EWS is not based on scientific data as it does not clearly define the group of individuals to be included within its purview since there is no proper measure for economic weakness.
• There is a section of people who believe that the entire concept of reservations will be obsolete given the rise of private-sector jobs and declining jobs in the public sector.
• The individuals intending to acquire a 10% reservation under the EWS category must have an annual income that is not more than INR 8 lakhs. This criterion can be misused by displaying lesser income.

Important Highlights of the Discussion:

• It was rightly explained by an expert that no policy that is introduced with the purpose of social upliftment can be stone inscribed that is rigid towards a change. This decision of the government to revisit the criteria of income benchmark of the beneficiaries under the EWS category is in harmony with the Supreme Court observations on the said issue.
• At the periphery, it is the numerical representation of the income, not more than 8 lakhs which is set as a criterion to be eligible for the EWS category. 
• However, the larger picture lays emphasis on the very definition of the economically weaker sections, individuals who can be called economically weaker, their identification and measure of their economic weakness.
• From the judicial perspective, equality must be the underpinning objective of every policy and governance which is deciphered through equality of opportunities for all envisaged by the Constitution as well.
• This forms the basis of providing reservation to certain sections of the society who are economically weaker irrespective of their caste.

Ways to Address the concern surrounding reservation under the EWS category

• The question has been raised on the adequacy of just 10% reservation with INR 8 lakhs as the upper limit of the annual income as a huge percentage of the population lives with income below the set limit especially after the pandemic that resulted in a considerable decline in the income. This is why an expert suggested a continuity of the existing income ceiling and revisiting the criteria with the changing demands of time.
• There has to be collective wisdom to define and measure the economic weakness of certain sections of the society in order to shape the concept of economic justice.
• Infrastructure expansion of institutions like the IIM, IIT, NIIT (National Institute of Information Technology) and the Indian Institutes of Information Technology can play a transformative role in providing equitable access to quality education and establishing a balance between the underprivileged and the individuals at the borderline of poverty. 
• This would result in meeting the demand of scientific and technical labors thereby contributing to economic growth. 
• Increasing the number of institutions would be merely a unidirectional approach to dealing with the larger context of equitable opportunities. It is necessary to upgrade the teachers and professors in order to deliver quality education and to enhance the competitiveness of the students.
• Therefore, scaling up training and capacity building of technical education will be a durable step and open up dynamic opportunities with an inclusive environment.
• There is another set of beliefs that encourages new avenues of artificial intelligence, machine learning and online tutelage where students across the country can learn from the best minds instead of just looking forward to the IITs and IIMs.

Read more summaries of Perspective in the link.

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