Telangana second state to implement reservation for EWS

Naveen S Garewal
Tribune News Service
Hyderabad, January 15

Telangana will become the second state after Gujarat to implement the 10 percent reservation for economically weaker sections (EWS) passed by the Parliament for general category, both in educational institutions and state government jobs.

The state is expected to formally sanction the policy in the assembly session that will begin January 17.

A senior official in the Chief Minister’s Office said: “We have decided to implement the 10 per cent quota for EWS in state government jobs and educational institutions on the lines of the quota announced by the NDA government at the Centre”. The Constitution (One Hundred and Third Amendment) Act, 2019, which grants 10 per cent reservation in central government jobs and central educational institutions for the EWS got its nod from President Ram Nath Kovind on January 12.

According to the state chief secretary SK Joshi, the Telangana Government had decided to go ahead with the implementation of the legislation even though it was not mandatory for all states to adopt the central Act.

However, sources said that the state may introduce its own modifications like reducing the creamy layer upper limit of Rs 8 lakh per annum income. The government is contemplating that not only poor from EWS but also the SC/ST and OBC sections would be made eligible to avail of this quota.

Telangana has over 50 per cent SC/ST population, besides this the state is also pushing for a 12 per cent reservations for Muslims that constitute 14 per cent of the state’s 3.63 crore population. Besides, when the 10 per cent reservation for EWS is implements, Telangana is expected to become the state with the highest reservation for jobs and in education institutions in the country.