OBCs earning over Rs 6 lakh annually won't get quotas

March 16, 2013

OBCs_EaringNew Delhi, Mar 16: OBCs earning over Rs 6 lakh annually will not be eligible for reservations in jobs and education with a group of ministers on Friday deciding to raise the 'creamy layer' bar from Rs 4.50 lakh as part of the revision done every four years.

The increase, however, marks a setback for the 'backward lobby' of ministers that blocked the proposal for fixing creamy layer at Rs 6 lakh in the Cabinet last June, arguing it did not reflect the fall in value of currency and inflation. 'Creamy layer' is the income limit beyond which OBCs are not eligible for quotas.

A group of ministers headed by P Chidambaram is learnt to have weighed in favour of retaining the income level suggested by social justice ministry that ran into resistance in the Cabinet last year. It included HRD minister Pallam Raju, social justice minister Selja and MoS in PMO V Narayanasamy.

While there were murmurs that the bar be raised further, the finance minister argued that keeping the quota net too high would crowd out the genuinely poor and the needy among backwards.

The higher the income ceiling, more the people would qualify for reservations with a greater inclusion of affluent sections. It is seen to disadvantage the poor among OBCs.

While the creamy layer would be final only once approved by the Union Cabinet, Narayanasamy's presence in the GoM suggests a sense of finality.

Narayanasamy, along with petroleum minister Veerappa Moily and overseas Indian affairs minister Vayalar Ravi, had opposed the Rs 6 lakh proposal in the Cabinet, saying it be at least Rs 7 lakh. The resistance forced the prime minister to refer the issue for consultations.

The Chidambaram-led ministerial panel's move to keep a "uniform Rs 6 lakh salary bar" is way below the recommendation made by National Commission for Backward Classes that it should be Rs 12 lakh in urban areas and Rs 9 lakh in rural areas.

The social justice ministry is learnt to have rebuffed NCBC on various counts. It argued against dual creamy layer for rural and urban areas, and questioned the panel for not doing due diligence.

The income ceiling was introduced at Rs 1 lakh in 1993 and was revised to Rs 2.50 lakh in 2004 and Rs 4.50 lakh in 2008.

As against NCBC's suggestion of Rs 12 lakh that reflected Mandal satraps' long-held aversion for the concept of creamy layer, the Centre seems to have been deterred by the backlash of a huge hike.

While there can be judicial challenge arguing that setting the bar too low is designed to neutralize the income ceiling, there are fears in the ruling dispensation that quota for rich OBCs would lead to demands from upper castes that their poor too be given reservations.

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News Network
April 2,2020

New Delhi,  Apr 2: Muslim cleric Imam Umer Ilyasi appealed to all the individuals who attended Tablighi Jamaat congregation at Nizamuddin Markaz in Delhi recently, not to hide from the government and not to be scared of it.

"I appeal to all the Muslim brothers and mosque managing committees involved in the Jamaat congregation to please come out and inform the government. You do not need to feel scared of the government," Ilyasi told news agency.

He added: "You do not need to feel scared of the government. If you are quarantined, it doesn't mean you will be punished. This is for your and other people's safety."
On the subject of people likely to be quarantined, he said that if one does get quarantined, he or she must not think those quarantine facilities are jails. "If you are quarantined, it doesn't mean you will be punished. This is for your and other people's safety. Quarantine is the cure, you do not need to worry about it," he added.

Ilyasi further appealed to the people that one must not associate religion with the coronavirus outbreak. "Islam talks about saving one person's life and securing a person's life. Do not connect the outbreak with religion as this outbreak does not affect any religion or caste in particular," he said.

With regards to the lockdown being imposed by the centre, he said: "I appeal to all that we must obey the lockdown judiciously as there is no medicine or cure for this disease."
The Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare's latest bulletin said that there are 1,834 coronavirus positive cases in India, including 1,649 active cases, 144 cured/discharged/migrated people and 41 deaths.

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News Network
April 9,2020

Thiruvananthapuram, Apr 9: Kerala, which was among the first state in the country to report a Corona positive case, has turned its entire public healthcare system into a single interconnected grid to generate uninterrupted information and provide flawless services, thanks to the daily zoom or video conferences of top health authorities for chalking out a dynamic strategy to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic.

The daily zoom or remote conferences held by Health Minister K K Shailaja and top health sector officials with the medical and paramedical personnel on the ground have lent a cutting edge to the state government’s all out efforts in monitoring the situation on the ground and formulating effective responses to address the various needs and concerns of the people, an official release said on Thursday.

The Minister is joined in this meticulous exercise by top administrators and planners, including Dr Rajan N Khobragade, Principal Secretary, Health; Dr. Rathan U Kelker, State Mission Director, National Health Mission, Dr Saritha, Director of Health Services, Dr Ramla Beevi, Director of Medical Education and other senior officials.

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News Network
January 29,2020

New Delhi, Jan 29: The Janata Dal (United) today expelled its vice-president Prashant Kishor and senior leader Pavan Kumar accusing them of "anti-party" activities.

Both the leaders have been attacking the party leadership over its pro-CAA stand.

The spat between Nitish Kumar and Kishor was out in the open yesterday when the former reminded the political strategist that he was inducted into the party on the recommendation of Union home minister Amit Shah.

It all began when Nitish, while talking to the media here, said, “I don’t have any problem if he (Kishor) wants to leave the party. But if he wants to stay, then he will have to follow the basic structure of the party.”

Varma had also questioned the JDU's alliance with the BJP in Delhi Assembly polls while Kishor has more than once voiced his differences with the party known on the issue of CAA and NRC.
 

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