Srinagar, June 24: A cabinet meeting chaired by Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah was held on Tuesday, focusing on several critical administrative issues. Among the topics discussed was the central government’s response to the recommendations made by the ministerial subcommittee regarding reservations in government jobs and educational institutions.
The Chief Minister’s office shared an update on social media platform ‘X’, stating that the meeting, conducted at the Civil Secretariat in Srinagar, deliberated on various proposals and policy matters aimed at strengthening governance, accelerating development projects, and improving the quality of public services in Jammu and Kashmir.
It is noteworthy that on December 10, 2024, the Jammu and Kashmir Cabinet established a ministerial subcommittee to review the reservation system. This subcommittee submitted its report to the government on June 10, 2025, approximately six months later.
Following this, the cabinet sought departmental advice and finalized the report. On December 4, 2025, the cabinet approved the report and forwarded it to the Lieutenant Governor.
The report recommended increasing the share of open merit category in government jobs and educational seats from 30% to 40%. Currently, the total reservation for various categories, including the economically weaker sections, has reached 70%, leaving only 30% of jobs and seats available for the open merit category, which has led to discontent among the youth.
Under the existing system, Scheduled Tribe-1, Scheduled Tribe-2, Residents of Backward Areas (RBA), and Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) each receive 10% reservation. Additionally, Scheduled Castes and Other Backward Classes receive 8% reservation each, while areas adjacent to the Line of Actual Control and international border regions receive 4% reservation.
Moreover, a 10% horizontal reservation is also in place, with 6% allocated for ex-servicemen and 4% for persons with disabilities.
However, the Lieutenant Governor did not approve this report and returned it to the Jammu and Kashmir government with comments from the Ministry of Home Affairs.
Now, the Jammu and Kashmir Cabinet is exploring ways to increase the share of open merit in government job recruitment and admissions to educational institutions to at least 40%.
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