The Haryana Cabinet, chaired by Chief Minister Nayab Saini, decided at its first meeting on Friday to formally accept the Supreme Court's decision related to the sub-categorisation of Scheduled Caste SC and Scheduled Tribe reservations and implement it immediately.
The decision, it said would ensure fair distribution of benefits within the present reservation system. Currently, 15 percent reservation for SC and 7.5 per cent for Scheduled Tribe communities exist. This would enable the Haryana government to specifically designate quotas within this 22.5 per cent existing reservation for those sub-groups within SCs and STs who have lesser representation in employment and education.
The Supreme Court yesterday ruled on August 1 that a sub-classification would be permissible within reserved category groups for providing the benefits of affirmative action. A 7-judge Constitution Bench headed by CJI D.Y. Chandrachud overturned the 2004 judgement of a five-judge Constitution Bench which barred preferential treatment to certain sub-castes, holding that the members of the SCs and STs form homogeneous groups incapable of further regrouping or classification. However, on 17 January 2020, a five-judge bench led by Justice Arun Mishra (now retired) gave an opinion that the ruling needs to be revisited by a larger bench, as the benefit of reservation is not percolating down to the neediest and poorest of the poor.
In the first meeting, which was held a day after it took the oath of office, the Cabinet declared free dialysis for patients suffering from severe kidney diseases in all government hospitals across the state.
The first paper that I signed when I took charge was about the order related to kidney patients. We had also promised it in the elections. It costs Rs 20,000 to Rs 25,000 per month for dialysis. Now that cost will be borne by the Haryana government, Chief Minister Saini said.
On government job recruitments, Saini reacted sharply at the previous Congress government accusing it of treating job distribution as a business.
Regarding the Assembly session, he said the issue was taken up by the Cabinet and that a date would be finalised post festive season in one to two days.
Saini, who has told criminals either to leave the state or face strict action, also, reassured farmers that every grain of their crop will be bought at the MSP.
He emphasized transparency as he reminded that he had promised to provide 50,000 jobs, out of which he has already offered 15,000 jobs and proposed 25,000 more. He said the recruitment of such jobs will be done without collecting any sort of hard cash. He said all sorts of welfare schemes initiated by the previous government will go on uninterrupted.
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