PATNA: CM Nitish Kumar has said that "social and educational backwardness", and not "economic backwardness", should be the basis to identify the beneficiaries of reservation in jobs and educational institutions.
"Our Constitution also underlines the criterion of 'social and educational backwardness'," Kumar told reporters in Patna on Monday. "The Bihar government offers scholarship, students' credit card and free bicycle and uniform," the CM said and added these schemes could be availed of even by the students belonging to upper castes.
Strongly favouring reservation for SCs and STs in promotion in government jobs, Nitish said he and his party also favoured quota in private sector.
The CM said the private sector jobs should be reserved on the same criteria as the government jobs. "The percentage of quota should also be similar to that in government jobs," said Nitish, who is also the JD (U)'s national president. "We support LJP chief Ram Vilas Paswan's demand for a constitutional amendment for restoration of the provision of quota in promotion. Our government provided quota in promotion to SCs and STs in the state services, but the Patna high court annulled our decision," he said and added the matter was now pending in the apex court.
Told that Paswan planned to write to PM Narendra Modi for bringing in a constitutional amendment to ensure reservation in promotion, the CM said his party would welcome any such initiative of Paswan.
"Our Constitution also underlines the criterion of 'social and educational backwardness'," Kumar told reporters in Patna on Monday. "The Bihar government offers scholarship, students' credit card and free bicycle and uniform," the CM said and added these schemes could be availed of even by the students belonging to upper castes.
Strongly favouring reservation for SCs and STs in promotion in government jobs, Nitish said he and his party also favoured quota in private sector.
The CM said the private sector jobs should be reserved on the same criteria as the government jobs. "The percentage of quota should also be similar to that in government jobs," said Nitish, who is also the JD (U)'s national president. "We support LJP chief Ram Vilas Paswan's demand for a constitutional amendment for restoration of the provision of quota in promotion. Our government provided quota in promotion to SCs and STs in the state services, but the Patna high court annulled our decision," he said and added the matter was now pending in the apex court.
Told that Paswan planned to write to PM Narendra Modi for bringing in a constitutional amendment to ensure reservation in promotion, the CM said his party would welcome any such initiative of Paswan.
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