Bihar: Controversy Erupts As Nitish Kumar Proposes 75 Per Cent Reservation After Caste Survey Results, OBC-EBC Quota To Be 43 Per Cent

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has proposed a significant increase in reservations for government jobs and state-run educational institutions.

If approved, this move would raise the total reservation quota in the state to a substantial 75 per cent, including the mandated 10 per cent reservation for Economically Weaker Sections as per central government guidelines.

Under the proposed revisions, Scheduled Caste candidates would have a 20 per cent reservation, while candidates from Other Backward Classes (OBCs) and Extremely Backward Classes (EBCs) would see their quota increase from 30 per cent to 43 per cent, as reported by NDTV.

Additionally, a two per cent reservation has been proposed for Scheduled Tribe candidates.

The current reservation levels in Bihar stand at 18 per cent for EBCs, 12 per cent for Backward Classes, 16 per cent for Scheduled Castes, and one per cent for Scheduled Tribes.

This proposal comes shortly after the release of a comprehensive report on the contentious statewide caste survey in the Bihar Assembly.

The caste survey's data has been a subject of dispute, with the opposition BJP alleging that the ruling Janata Dal (United)-Rashtriya Janata Dal alliance inflated data concerning the Yadav community and Muslims.

Nitish Kumar has criticised the BJP for these allegations and demanded proof.

The latest data from the survey reveals that over 60 per cent of Bihar's population belongs to Backward or Extremely Backward Classes.

Moreover, the data highlights economic disparities, with 34 per cent of all families in the state living on less than Rs 6,000 per month, and 42 per cent of Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe families facing poverty.

The data also reveals educational challenges, with less than six per cent of individuals from Scheduled Castes completing their schooling (i.e., clearing Class 11 and Class 12), increasing to nine per cent for the overall population.