POLITICS OF RESERVATION

By clearing the bill at the cabinet level to grant reservation to the economically weaker upper castes, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is again trying to woo voters and broaden the support base. Reservations in educational institutions and jobs for the economically backward upper castes had never got any attention since Independence. Now, the parameters have been set based on the size of agricultural land and residential plot in rural and municipality areas. Presently, the reservation is about 49.5% against the limit of 50%. The BJP will have to make amendments in the Constitution otherwise the issue will be challenged in the courts. It may be difficult for other parties to oppose this move.

Subhash Vaid in befooling the electorates by merely blaming the Congress. To him, farmers are only food providers and not vote bank, courtesy his current whirlwind in Jharkhand and Odisha, and earlier in Gurdaspur. Are farmers not voters? It’s time for every sane person to ponder as to where this country is heading under his stewardship.

JS Bhogal, Dasuya of action for creating employment opportunities. Funds allocated for unemployment allowance should be utilised for implementing apprenticeship schemes in both public and private sectors. To provide ‘roti’ (bread) to the unemployed, we need to increase the return on training investment with skills like communication. The Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) can also play a constructive role in resolving the issue.

Prof MM Goel, Kurukshetra