A LEGISLATION introduced
in the Rajya Sabha exempts
institutions of excellence —
including the Indian Institutes
of Technology, the national
institutes of technology and
the Indian Institutes of
Management — from reserving posts for scheduled caste
and scheduled tribe candidates, except at the entry level.
In an election year, the
Scheduled Castes and the
Scheduled Tribes (Reservation in Posts and Services)
Bill 2008, approved by the
Upper House last month, has
the potential to stir up a political storm.
The 47 exempted institutes
include leading universities
such as Aligarh Muslim
University, Delhi University,
Banaras Hindu University,
Allahabad University and the
Vishwa Bharati, apart from
the All India institute of
Medical Sciences, New Delhi
and JIPMER (Pondicherry).
“There shall be no reservation where appointments are
made to posts higher than the
lowest grade of Group A posts
(lecturer level) and classified
as scientific and technical
posts and posts in institutions
of national importance and
Indian Institutes of Management specified in the schedule,” a clause in the bill said.
The IITs and IIMs are
opposed to reservation in faculty posts pointing to the nonavailability of required talent.
Central universities such as
the Allahabad University have
a similar grouse. “We had
advertised for 300 posts in 2008
including those for lecturers,
readers and professors. Despite receiving 15,000 applications, we were not able to find
eligible candidates from the
reserved sections for some of
the senior positions,” said
Allahabad University Vice
Chancellor Rajen Harshe.
As expected, the IITs are
happy with the exemption
clause in the Bill. “This is
what we have been demanding,” said Gautam Barua,
director, IIT Guwahati.
As a part of their common
minimum programme, the
bill was conceived by the UPA
to ensure equality of opportunity in education and
employment for SCs, STs and
religious minorities.
While the bill attempts to
legalise provisions related to
relaxation in age, qualification and experience, in a way ,
it closes doors for the deprived
sections when it comes to senior faculty posts.
prasad.n@hindustantimes.com
A LEGISLATION introduced
in the Rajya Sabha exempts
institutions of excellence —
including the Indian Institutes
of Technology, the national
institutes of technology and
the Indian Institutes of
Management — from reserv-
ing posts for scheduled caste
and scheduled tribe candi-
dates, except at the entry level.
In an election year, the
Scheduled Castes and the
Scheduled Tribes (Reser-
vation in Posts and Services)
Bill 2008, approved by the
Upper House last month, has
the potential to stir up a polit-
ical storm.
The 47 exempted institutes
include leading universities
such as Aligarh Muslim
University, Delhi University,
Banaras Hindu University,
Allahabad University and the
Vishwa Bharati, apart from
the All India institute of
Medical Sciences, New Delhi
and JIPMER (Pondicherry).
“There shall be no reserva-
tion where appointments are
made to posts higher than the
lowest grade of Group A posts
(lecturer level) and classified
as scientific and technical
posts and posts in institutions
of national importance and
Indian Institutes of Manage-
ment specified in the sched-
ule,” a clause in the bill said.
The IITs and IIMs are
opposed to reservation in fac-
ulty posts pointing to the non-
availability of required talent.
Central universities such as
the Allahabad University have
a similar grouse. “We had
advertised for 300 posts in 2008
including those for lecturers,
readers and professors. De-
spite receiving 15,000 applica-
tions, we were not able to find
eligible candidates from the
reserved sections for some of
the senior positions,” said
Allahabad University Vice
Chancellor Rajen Harshe.
As expected, the IITs are
happy with the exemption
clause in the Bill. “This is
what we have been demand-
ing,” said Gautam Barua,
director, IIT Guwahati.
As a part of their common
minimum programme, the
bill was conceived by the UPA
to ensure equality of oppor-
tunity in education and
employment for SCs, STs and
religious minorities.
While the bill attempts to
legalise provisions related to
relaxation in age, qualifica-
tion and experience, in a way ,
it closes doors for the deprived
sections when it comes to sen-
ior faculty posts.
prasad.n@hindustantimes.com