TS issues GO for 10% EWS quota

The Telangana government on Monday issued orders to implement 10 per cent reservations for the Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) in education and employment.

The orders were issued following the decision announced by Chief Minister Chandrashekar Rao on January 21 to implement 10 per cent EWS quota in the state.

The GO issued by Chief Secretary Somesh Kumar stated, “The government has decided to implement 10 per cent reservation to the EWS for admissions into all educational institutions in the State and also in respect of initial appointments to the posts in services under the State, following the criteria and guidelines prescribed by the Centre.”

In January 2019, the Narendra Modi government passed a Constitutional Amendment Bill in Parliament seeking to provide 10 per cent reservations for EWS in education and employment.

People who have an annual income less than `8 lakh, own less than five acres of farm land, have house smaller than 1,000 sq feet in a town or a 100 sq yard house in notified municipal area would be treated as economically weaker sections and they would qualify for the quota.

It was over two years since the quota was implemented, but the TS government did not do so on one pretext or the other leading to protests from the poor sections among upper castes. Following this, the CM had on January 21 announced to implement EWS quota in TS.

With this EWS quota, the reservations in TS go up to 60 per cent in the state.