Mumbai: The State government has sought legal opinion on giving the Maratha community 16% reservation in recruitment for 72,000 jobs.
Sources said the government is checking if the jobs could be set aside constitutionally and legally for Marathas. “We have been told by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis to find out if this is legally possible. Once that is verified, the government could take a call,” a senior secretary said.
The government is likely to fill up 36,000 posts by this year-end, while the remaining posts will likely be filled up next year. “The other option is to put a stay on the recruitment. But we want to explore the possibility if this reservation is possible,” a source said.
Almost 11,000 vacancies are in the rural development and agriculture department. The other vacancies are in the public health, animal husbandry, fisheries, home, water resources, water conservation, and the public works department. Sources said the only other option the government is left with is to stay the recruitment for the time being, though the State Cabinet has already given it a nod.