HRD Ministry to refer Dalit Muslim quota issue to Home Ministry

New Delhi, Jan 10 (UNI) The Human Resource Development Ministry, planning action on the Sachar Committee Report on educatinal backwardness of Muslims, has decided to refer the issue of reservation for dalit Muslims in educational institutions to the Ministry of Home Affairs.

This was stated by Minister of State for HRD Mohammad Ali Ashraf Fatimi while talking to reporters here.

Mr Fatimi, who is chairman of a 13-member committee, set up by HRD Minister Arjun Singh to examine the findings of the Sachar Committee concerning education of Muslims, said the issue of dalit Muslims was raised in various meetings of the committee but it was decided to refer it to the Home Ministry..

''The report of the committee was slated to be presented today itself, advancing of the January 31 deadline, but some calculations regarding financial implications of the Plan of Action prepared for promoting education among Muslims were not complete,''he said.

He, however, said the Ministry has informed the Planning Commission about the steps it wants to take to promote literacy and spread education among Muslims in the light of the Sachar Committee report.

''The Planning Commission had asked us for the information before January 10 so that it could use it while chalking out a strategy in the 11th plan,'' Mr Fatmi said.

The detailed report of the committee would be presented on January 31.

Mr Fatmi said that inputs from a variety of sources like NGOs, academic institutions, experts and different government departments has gone into the making of the committee's report.

''We have studied the scope of action in primary, secondary, adult, higher education and spread of literacy besdies Aanganbari and Kasturbagandhi Vidyalaya, in an effort to make the report as meaningful, practical and comprehensive as possible,'' said Mr Fatmi.

The Committee has also laid special emphasis on checking the dropout rates among Muslim students. Residential schools for girls on the lines of Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalayas are also among the committee's suggestions, he said.

''The Committee will meet again on Janury 25 to finalise its report,'' he added.

UNI