Bihar Assembly Approves Bill To Expand Caste Quota To 65%

In a landmark move, the Bihar assembly on Thursday approved a hike in quotas for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Extremely Backward Classes and Other Backward Classes from the existing 50 per cent to 65 per cent.

Bills providing for the same in educational institutions and government jobs, drafted in the backdrop of a comprehensive caste survey conducted by the Nitish Kumar government, were passed unanimously through voice vote.

Chief Minister Nitish Kumar initiated the proposal to boost reservations for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Other Backward Classes, and Extremely Backward Classes to 65 percent in Bihar. This rise surpasses the 50 percent ceiling set by the Supreme Court. If combined with the existing Centre's 10 percent quota for the Economically Weaker Sections (EWS), the proposed reservation will amount to 75 percent.

The distribution of proposed quotas stands at 20 percent for Scheduled Castes (SC), 2 percent for Scheduled Tribes (ST), and 43 percent for Other Backward Classes (OBC) and Extremely Backward Classes (EBC).

Currently, Bihar allocates 18 percent reservation for EBCs, 12 percent for OBCs, 16 percent for SCs, 1 percent for STs, and 3 percent for women from backward classes in state jobs and educational institutions.