YOUTH FOR EQUALITY

QUOTA CALL

2006-08-22T04:59:00.000-07:00

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QUOTA CALL: Moily says the execution cost takes into account recurring and non-recurring expenditure.

New Delhi: The Oversight Committee, set up to prepare a roadmap for reservations for OBCs in elite educational institutions, has projected an additional student intake of 80,557 with a 54 per cent capacity expansion of seats to implement the new quota.

However, this will involve an overall expenditure of Rs 16,563.34 crore – Rs 9,092.96 crore as non-recurring and Rs 7,470.38 crore as recurring expenses – over five years.

Of the total additional intake of students under the 27 per cent quota, 17 central universities will accommodate a major chunk of 63,005 students, followed by engineering colleges offering seats to 16,132 students, said statistics contained in the Committee's interim report.

A total of 1,42,757 students are currently enrolled in the agriculture, management, medical and engineering fields in the Central universities that were studied by the Veerappa Moily-led report.

The Committee, in its report presented to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh recently, pointed out that a 12,126-strong faculty would be required for the 54 per cent expansion of seats.

However, the sub-group on engineering felt not all institutions would be able to implement the 27 per cent quota in one go. It recommended that an enabling provision may be put in place for institutions hampered by special constraints or limitations to enable them to implement the quota in a phased manner over a period of not more than three years.

Management institutes wanted the reservations implemented over a period of time.

One of the major observations on academic aspects related to the OBC quota was that the IIMs conduct courses like fellow programmes, executive development programmes and faculty development courses other than the regular two-year postgraduate diploma programmes that lay down work experience, and sponsorship as eligibility criteria, the report said.

"The OBC reservation should not be extended to these categories and must be confined to the postgraduate diploma and equivalent programmes only," the sub-group said, adding there must be ‘no unjustifiable’ demand on institutes to lower admission standards.

A systematic review of the implementation of the OBC quota must be undertaken after five years to reform and effect improvements, it said.

Echoing similar views, the sub-group on engineering and technology said "the issue of academic excellence was a major concern" and under no circumstances should the cut-off figure be lowered to accommodate or fill the reserved seats for OBCs.

"It is an ideal situation for the top technical institutions to expand, diversify and grow on a massive scale," it pointed out.

The Moily report also suggested the creation of a monitoring committee in the Planning Commission to review the progress in implementing the OBC quota plan and the execution of detailed project reports giving a timeframe and required budgetary outlays for implementing the reservations.

On OBC quota, DMK sends PM a clear message

2006-08-09T05:48:00.000-07:00

http://www.indianexpress.com/printerFriendly/10097.html
On OBC quota, DMK sends PM a clear message: do it now, and no dilution
Express news service
Posted online: Monday, August 07, 2006 at 0000 hrs IST
CHENNAI, AUGUST 6
As Prime Minister Manmohan Singh tries to evolve a consensus on reservation for OBCs, partner DMK has made clear to him that quota should not be “diluted in any manner”.
“I strongly insist that the UPA government should respect and respond to the people’s mandate by immediately extending reservation to the OBCs at all levels in all institutions under the Government of India without any dilution,” DMK chief and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi said in a letter to the Prime Minister.
Reservation is an emotive issue in Tamil Nadu, with the state enforcing a high 69% in education and employment.
The DMK chief said that OBCs, ever since the 1950s, have been denied reservation in educational institutions, state-run units and the Central administration. “Thus social justice to the OBCs was denied and delayed for more than four decades,” Karunanidhi said.
Maintaining that “we are still making an irrational debate over implementing reservation for OBCs”, he said the Centre should not give in to “unjust” demands of the anti-reservation lobby who make 5-10% of the country’s population.
“They suggest to implement the reservation for OBCs in a phased manner, to apply creamy layer concept and to increase the seats for general category. I am of the firm opinion that if these demands are accepted, it would amount to preferentially empower the empowered at the cost of oppressing the oppressed,” he said.

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http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Anti-Terrorist_Muslims

IMPORTANT LINKS FROM UP

2006-08-09T05:43:00.000-07:00

Hi All,

Uttar Pradesh is really making waves in terms of Anti Quata Protests.IIT Kanpur is consistently pressing its demands for not implementing OBC Quota in CEntral Institutions.(Links are there in Forwared mail)

Last Saturday they Got arrested by Police in Kanpur but still thet are fighting like true Sons of Motherland.

It should be Noted that in Uttar Pradesh also there is 49.5% Quota already in State Govt Institutions some what like like that of Andhra Pradesh.Still they are Lobbying Strong.

Why can't we in Andhra Pradesh???

Please wear BLACK on 14th August 2006,show the spirit of TRUE SONS of Motherland.

Jai Hind
yfe nellore

CHANDRA SHEKHAR SHARMA wrote:
Date: Mon, 7 Aug 2006 21:57:34 +0530 (IST)
Subject: imp links
From: "CHANDRA SHEKHAR SHARMA"
To: "Saurabh Bharadwaj"
plz go through these links:

http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/004200608071428.htm

http://www.hindustantimes.com/news/181_1762641,0000.htm

--
"Prosperity is a great teacher; adversity a greater"

CHANDRA SHEKHAR SHARMA
Ph.D.(Chemial Engg.)
HALL-VII,C-306,
I.I.T.-K,Kanpur
Mobile No. 09935167010

HELPING HAND

2006-08-02T06:16:00.000-07:00

HERE THE YFE NELLORE HAS COME WITH A HELPING HANDS TO PREVENT THE SCHOOL STUDENTS FROM GETTING EFFECTED FROM 'CHIKANGUNYA' A DISEASE WHICH HAS BEEN AFFECTING THE PRESENT SOCIETY.
AS WE WANT TO IMPROVE THE PRIMARY EDUCATION, IT IS A PART OF ANTI-RESERVATION CAMPAING SAYING THAT WE ARE NOT AGAINST ANY CASTE,THIS FOR A SOCIAL CAUSE.....

Some Aspects of our Legal Battle in Supreme Court

2006-07-31T03:55:00.000-07:00

If you have read it already Ignore it but forward it to friends!!

As you are aware that SC in an order issued on 31.05.06 had
a) given 8 weeks time (by july end) to union govt to file an affidavit
b) observed that
“if ultimately the policy, which is yet to be implemented, is in fact implemented, same shall be sub to result of writ petitions”
AND
“if any action is taken by the govt in respect to impugned policy, the same shall be subject to the outcome of present proceedings and/or any proceeding which may be filed relating to the issues.”
c) refused to issue stay order.

I would like to bring to your notice the popular belief prevalent [as people including our friends who participated in protests are not aware of exact observations of the order, which are mentioned above (b)]
We have lost the battle because the only intention of the SC was to help the govt by
a) forcing medicos to call off the strike
b) giving govt 8 weeks time and not issuing stay order despite the fact that the monsoon session was to begin on 27th june

if the govt introduces the bill and tries to pass it ( which I think it will) it will lead to severe demoralization of students
a) right now this would be the motive of govt- pass the bill (even if it is clear to them that it wont have any legal standing) as a show of strength/ iron will….. given their knowledge that we are not in a position to protest/strike/show our dissent strongly (as directed by the court)
b) this will compound to the belief that judiciary is also on the side of legislative ( that SC has helped govt to pass the bill, as people are not aware of SC’s exact observations)
c) we, as active members, know about the order properly; would wait for the govt’s reply due in july end and would not protest strongly(at max, strike for 1 day)…. This will lead to further spread of misbelief that YFE has lost its confidence and perseverance.

What we should do
a)prepare for a very well organized protest all over the country in case the bill is introduced and passed
b)more importantly, prepare the people(students as well as masses) regarding this move of govt and its motive
(for which we don’t have much time, keeping in mind the current state of demotivation and lack of appropriate nexus up to grass root levels.)

suggestions: -if media doesn’t give proper coverage to us, we can give ads in newspapers/ televisions(depending upon funds available).
-Extensive circulation of pamphlets in participating institutions.

While Venu stays, Ramadoss may have to go

2006-07-31T03:34:00.000-07:00

Abraham Thomas

Snubbed twice by the Delhi High Court, there is fresh trouble brewing for Health Minister Anbumani Ramadoss who is now facing a threat of disqualification from the Election Commission.Sources said that Rashtrapati Bhavan has forwarded to the Election Commission a petition filed by a retired IAS officer seeking disqualification of Ramadoss for occupying an office of profit. Ramadoss is the president of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS).

Under the procedure prescribed by the constitutional provision of Article 102 relating to office of profit, the President has subsequently referred the matter for Election Commission's (EC) opinion.

The petition filed by the bureaucrat, whose identity was undisclosed by the source has reportedly taken the same grounds for disqualification as contained in the petition filed before the Delhi High Court. Two petitions are pending against Ramadoss before the High Court in which notices have been issued by Justice Anil Kumar to the Centre and Election Commission.

The Election Commission, which is yet to file its affidavit before the High Court is expected to give its response on August 17, when the petition filed by AIIMS Director Dr P Venugopal is expected to come up for hearing.

The commission has been maintaining all along that it cannot give a prima facie opinion in the matter till it receives a reference from President Kalam.

The petition filed by Venugopal besides seeking the quashing of the AIIMS Institute Body's recommendation for terminating his services, alleged that Ramadoss himself or in the name of his personal staff enjoyed pecuniary benefits or privileges. Thus he is liable to incur disqualification from being a Parliament member under Article 102 of the Constitution.

The petition further states, the Health Minister after taking over as AIIMS President, started staying at its guesthouse. After he vacated, his Officer on Special Duty, DS Murthy, a retired police inspector, stayed there. The guesthouse was not meant for the Minister's personal staff, Venugopal alleged.

Besides, the Minister had been asking AIIMS to foot his mobile and landline phone bills. Ramadoss is also accused of bringing along an Indian Police Service (IPS) officer of the Tamil Nadu cadre, Pramod Kumar as OSD, who was paid salary and allowances from the AIIMS account.

(The Pioneer, New Delhi; July 29, 2006)

2006-07-24T03:47:00.000-07:00

some of our proud yfe members

'There should be quotas for Muslims, Christians'

2006-07-21T23:58:00.000-07:00

SEE WHAT'S GOING ON

Press Trust of India
Posted online: Thursday, July 13, 2006 at 1438 hours IST
Updated: Thursday, July 13, 2006 at 1451 hours IST

Chennai, July 13: Welcoming the concept of reservation for minorities, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi on Thursday said there should be ‘specific’ reservation for Christians and Muslims.

"I kindly request you to pursue this matter further so that there is specific reservation for Christians and Muslims, as they have been demanding reservation for a very long time," he said in a letter to Human Resources Development Minister Arjun Singh, a copy of which was released to the press here.

Referring to Singh's remarks yesterday that Muslims could be given reservation under the constitutional norms of backwardness, Karunanidhi said he ‘wholeheartedly’ welcomed the concept.

"I have already discussed with Thirumathi Sonia Gandhi, president of the AICC, the issue of reservation for minorities especially for Christians and Muslims," he said.

No quotas please, says this OBC

2006-07-21T23:53:00.000-07:00

B S Baviskar
Posted online: Monday, July 17, 2006 at 1008 hours IST

New Delhi, July 17: I am an OBC. I belong to the caste in Maharashtra called the Malis. The great social reformer, Mahatma Jotiba Phule, was a Mali. He advocated the abolition of the caste system, but never asked for reservations for the so-called backward classes.
I studied in a village primary school and then joined a high school in a small Maharashtra town. Then I went to Fergusson College, Pune, for my degree. Finally, I did my post-graduate studies, including a PhD, at the Delhi School of Economics. I then taught sociology for 32 years at Delhi University. I was never conscious of my identity as an OBC, because none of my classmates, teachers and colleagues ever bothered about my caste. I was never unfairly treated because of my caste.

It was the deliberations of the Mandal Commission during the late '70s, which first made me aware of my OBC identity. As a part of his inquiry its chairman, B P Mandal, called a meeting of social scientists to discuss the main task before the Commission: improving the condition of the OBCs. I was present at the meeting. The question boiled down to what should be the criteria to identify the backward sections to provide benefits and concessions through reservation. Should caste be the only criterion, or should the economic criterion also be used? It was clear from Mandal's initial statement that he favoured caste as the criterion. There were more than 60 social scientists (mainly sociologists and social anthropologists) at the meeting. A majority of them favoured caste as the best option. I was one of the very few who opposed this view.

I said that the proposal to treat caste as the basis of backwardness goes against the spirit of our Constitution, which aims at building a cohesive society beyond caste distinctions. Making caste the criterion of backwardness would only sharpen the rivalries and promote conflict in society. The reservations were justified in the case of SCs/STs because of the long history of their exploitation and oppression, but this was not applicable to the OBCs. Let’s not take steps which will perpetuate caste distinctions that will engender conflict, I said.

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There was a total silence for a few moments. Then one participant stood up to oppose what I said.

"These upper-caste people don’t like the other castes to come forward; we should ignore what they say," he said. He presumed I was a Brahmin and my views were based on my caste. A senior colleague clarified that I was not a Brahmin or an upper caste person. That I was, in fact, from an OBC community, who stood to benefit if caste became the criterion of backwardness. After that I did not have to say anything in my defence. As expected, the Mandal Commission decided in favour of caste.

Over the years, I have reflected on this issue and stuck to my original opinion. The proposed 27 per cent quota for the OBC castes is going to be harmful to our society. Worse, it is not going to benefit the genuinely needy and deserving backward castes. The way in which the OBC quotas are being implemented in some states is nothing short of a fraud. In most states the dominant castes have manipulated the system to hijack the benefits for themselves. How can one justify the Jats being included among OBCs ? They are substantial landowners, wealthy, politically powerful, and not backward.

Similarly, the Marathas in Maharashtra have cleverly included themselves in the OBC category by playing with the Kunabi-Maratha dichotomy. In the thirties, the Kunabis of western Maharashtra gave up Kunabi identity and claimed to be Marathas, which denoted a higher social status. Under the Mandal scheme, the Kunabis are listed as OBC but not the Marathas. Now all Marathas are claiming to be Kunabis to derive the benefits of quotas. The Marathas have outwitted the Mandal Commission. They have the best of both the worlds — the benefits of backwardness as well as dominance. There are many such cases in other states. The advocates of OBC quota, however, never mention these blatant anomalies, nor do they take seriously the issue of ‘creamy layer’.

Everyone knows that our politicians are supporting OBC quotas not because they care for the well-being of OBCs but because they expect electoral gains through this gimmick. However, as in the case of V P Singh, they are in for disappointment. They are not likely to get the votes they expect. You cannot fool the people all the time.

IIT FACTS-

2006-07-21T23:39:00.000-07:00

50% of the reserved seats of the IITs remain vacant (even the much lower entry marks were not secured by the students.)
25% of those who joined were forced to quit. They were unable to complete the 4 yr course even in 6 yrs.

NSSO points23.5% college seats already with OBC's. Why the need for reservation if they are already securing these seats by merit?

Parliamentary committee on welfare of SC & ST said-

IN DU between 1995-2000 50% UG SC unfilled
66% UG ST unfilled

Sukhdev Thorat chairman UGC- At higher education levels 1.2 lakh seats of reserved category are vacant. At the same time 40% of reserved category teaching staff posts remain unoccupied.

Hindustan Times- 16% seats in higher education are occupied by both SC ST put together whereas the Quota offered by the govt. is 22.5%. (Therefore 33% seats are wasted.)

Where is the need for these reserved seats to be increased, if they are going to waste as it is? Is this the correct use of the taxpayer's money?

HOW TO GO ABOUT ACHIEVING THIS?

2006-07-21T07:06:00.000-07:00

1) MOBILISING PUBLIC OPINION. Via media, demonstrations, signature campaigns.
2) LEGAL RECOURSE. Filing PIL (esp against reservation at postgraduate level)

Therefore we invite all Indians who feel stongly about this and wish to contribute in some way. We should be united, and make a powerful statement on this issue.

We realise that achieving this is an uphill task.... but we also believe ITS NOT IMPOSSIBLE.

Charter Of Demands

2006-07-21T07:00:00.000-07:00

Charter Of Demands

The Charter of Demands of the Youth For Equality movement is as follows:

Deferral of the proposed hike in reservation in the central universities.

AND

An Expert Commission should be formed which would explore all the avenues of affirmative actions, review the efficiency of reservation1 as an affirmative action (considering both its benefits and drawbacks) and compare the efficiencies of the all possible affirmative actions. Thus it should come up with a fool proof and time bound strategy to uplift and empower the backward sections of our country without interfering with the overall development and well being of our Nation.

Implementation of the proposed extended reservation policy and any other new reservation policy only after the commission has submitted its report.

A white paper on the reservation policy.

We view reservations as a limited step to provide opportunities for the backward sections of our country to acquire education and employment.

AND

Places in the Government jobs that are remaining vacant due to lack of eligible candidates from the reserved category should be opened for other eligible candidates immediately.

AND

No action should be taken against the agitating students, interns and resident doctors in any form as regards to service break, termination, pay deduction, legal action etc.

AND

The Hon’ble Prime Minister should give a concrete statement on the issue.

WHAT DO WE MEAN BY EXPERT COMMISSION?

It should be a non-political, non-parliamentary commission with members from judicial, social sciences, educational, scientific background. It should be formed in15 days and should submit its report within 1 year’s time.

WHAT WOULD BE ITS AIMS AND OBJECTIVE?

To come up with a fool proof and time bound* strategy to uplift and empower the backward sections of our country without interfering with the overall development and well being of our Nation.

WHAT SHOULD IT DO?

1) It would explore all the avenues of affirmative actions.

2) It would assess the efficiency of the existing reservations taking into consideration both its benefits and drawbacks.**

3) It would compare the efficiency of other means of affirmative actions with that of reservations.

4) It should find ways other than affirmative actions, which would help in changing the socio-economic system, which breeds exploitation and inequality.

5) It should come up with socio-economic criteria, which would exclude the affluent and those already having access to jobs and higher education.***

6) It should fix parameters to determine the degree of upliftment and empowerment of the backward sections so that when adequate degree is achieved the Government should stop the policy of affirmative actions.

7) It should always keep in mind that the affirmative actions whatever suggested by the Commission should never interfere with the overall development and well being of our Nation.

*We want that whatever affirmative actions would be followed should have an end-point defined. Parameters should be defined after which there would be no need for affirmative actions in the same lines as they are being given till date.

**While assessing the policy the Commission should take in account the current data about the population distribution.

***Creamy layer should be applied for all.

Even 59 years after Independence, the politics of competitive population rules on the OBC issue.

2006-07-18T06:10:00.000-07:00

3,743
Total number of identified OBCs
that exist in the central list as of
today.

682
Total number of communities
added to the OBC list since
Mandal Commission.

20,000
Crore rupees is the estimated
amount reqvired to implement
the new reservation formula.

23
Number of states that have to
enact new laws for OBCs after
the 93rd amendment.