Govt to review creamy layer criteria for OBC by year-end: Min

New Delhi, Aug 31 (PTI) The government will review the’creamy layer’ criteria for Other Backward Classes (OBC) bythe end of this year, Union Minister for Social Justice andEmpowerment Thawarchand Gehlot said today. At present, 27 per cent quota in government jobs andeducational institutions is given to OBCs, provided the annualincome of the family is up to Rs six lakh. Those with higherearnings are referred to as the ‘creamy layer’ and are noteligible for reservation. "There is a provision to review the creamy layerdefinition and other criteria for reservations after everythree years. And the last review of the OBC reservation wasdone in 2013," Gehlot told PTI here. Minister of State for Social Justice Ramdas Athawale hadyesterday pitched for extending the reservation limit from thepresent 50 per cent to 75 per cent, with an additional 25 percent for economically backward classes in all castes. Gehlot’s comment comes in the backdrop of a large numberof vacancies in government jobs meant for OBCs remainingunfilled for want of candidates. According to sources, the Social Justice Ministry isworking on a proposal to raise the annual income ceiling ofOBCs to Rs eight lakh. Raising the ceiling would result in a larger pool ofcandidates being eligible for government jobs and seats ineducational institutions. Earlier, the National Commission for Backward Classes(NCBC) had recommended more than doubling this income ceilingto Rs 15 lakh. "Even two decades after reservation (was introduced), outof the 27 per cent allocated quota, it has been seen that only12-15 per cent gets utilised. As per our analysis, the majorreason behind this is the ceiling on annual income," NCBCmember Ashok Saini had said. As per the Mandal Commission report, in 1980 OBCsconstituted 52 per cent of India’s population. The panel’sreport was based on the 1931 census. The National SampleSurvey Organisation (NSSO) had in 2006 pegged the OBCpopulation at 41 per cent. PTI JTR KIS RTKIS