No fund constraint in implementation of quota plan: Moily

New Delhi, June 12 (UNI) Mr M Veerappa Moily, Chairman of the Oversight Committee on Reservation, today said a short term plan and a long term strategy is being prepared to implement 27 per cent quota for OBCs in institutes of higher education from next year without reducing the general category seats and asserted there was no fund constraint in this regard.

However, Mr Moily refused to comment on Social Justice and Empowerment Minister Meira Kumar's statement that the government was planning to hike reservation for Scheduled Castes from 15 percent to 16.3 percent in view of their increase in population.

''My mandate as the Chairman of the Oversight Committee is limited to implementing the 27 percent reservation for OBCs in institutes of higher education while ensuring that the number of general category seats remain at the same level.

I cannot comment on the policy decision of the government.'' Mr Moily, who met Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission Montek Singh Ahluwalia this morning, said he apprised the Commission about the resources required to augument the faculty and infrastructure to increase the number of seats so that quota for OBCs could be implemented from 2007-2008 without any cut in the general category seats.

''A lot of funds would be required to increase the number of seats in institutions like IITs, IIMs, AIIMS without compromising the level of education and merit,'' he said but added that resources would not be a constraint.

''We are preparing a short-term plan and a long-term strategy for this purpose,'' he said and added that this plan would be presented to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh soon.

UNI AJ RR HS1727