Bhubaneswar, April 6: The Odisha Congress has welcomed the cabinet’s approval of the revised reservation policy for higher education. However, the state party president, Bhakta Charan Das, has raised concerns that the Other Backward Classes (OBC), who make up 54% of the population, are still not receiving justice.
In an interview with a news agency, Bhakta Charan Das stated, “The announcement regarding higher education and the new education policy now includes reservations for SC and ST students in medical and engineering studies, which was not previously available. This is a positive step. However, there remains a significant concern that the OBC community, which constitutes 54% of the state’s population, is not being treated fairly.”
He added, “This government is neglecting the OBC community. For a long time, OBC individuals have been demanding proportional reservations in technical and higher education based on their population ratio.”
Notably, in a historic decision, the Odisha government increased the reservation limits for Scheduled Castes (SC) and Scheduled Tribes (ST) students. Additionally, a separate quota for “socially and economically backward classes” (SEBC) in medical and technical education has been implemented.
This decision was made during a cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi in Bhubaneswar. It was announced that the quota for ST students has been raised from 12% to 22.50%, while the SC quota has increased from 8% to 16.25%. The state government has also introduced an 11.25% quota.
Bhakta Charan Das further noted that similar provisions have been implemented in other states like Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha, and Chhattisgarh, demonstrating that it is possible to exceed the established limits.
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