Shake-up in J&K Reservation Policy: Cabinet Clears Major Changes
The Jammu & Kashmir cabinet has approved a proposal to significantly revise the Union Territory’s reservation framework by reducing quotas in two key categories to enhance the Open Merit (OM) share by 10 percent.
Chaired by Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, the cabinet endorsed a seven percent reduction in the Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) quota and a three percent cut in the Reserved Backward Area (RBA) quota. The move aims to uplift the Open Merit category to 50 percent under vertical reservation.
According to authoritative sources, the cabinet has accepted all recommendations of the Cabinet Sub-Committee without any modification. The committee had advised against altering reservations for Scheduled Tribe-I, Scheduled Tribe-II, Scheduled Castes, Other Backward Classes, and Actual Line of Control/International Border categories.
The approved proposal will now be forwarded to the Lieutenant Governor for final consent. Under the Transaction of Business Rules, the Lieutenant Governor may need to consult the Union Home Ministry before granting approval, particularly since the decision affects communities protected under reservation laws.
At present, ST-I, ST-II, RBA, and EWS categories each enjoy 10 percent reservation, Scheduled Castes and OBCs receive 8 percent each, while the ALC/IB category holds 4 percent.
