DIMAPUR, MAY 16 (MExN): In a significant policy direction, Nagaland Chief Minister echoed the recent move of the UPA Alliance to implement OBC reservation in Higher Education. Rio, while speaking at a two day Conference on Empowerment of SCs, STs, and Minorities at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi called for extension of the reservation policy for SC/ST and OBCs to the private sector too, as provided for in Article 38 of the Indian Constitution. Expressing support for reservation of seats in higher education for OBCs, he stated that the implementation of the existing reservation of Government jobs and seats in higher education for STs was far from satisfactory with many of the reserved seats and jobs remaining unutilized.
Addressing the delegates at the inaugural function, Rio said that successive Governments at the Centre had been taking a number of affirmative actions, including several legislations, for promoting the welfare of the minorities, including the Dalits, SC, ST and OBCs etc, however, due to certain imperfections in the delivery mechanism, the noble aims and intentions of the framers of the constitution, as well as affirmative legislation had not yet produced the desired results. He therefore added that this was precisely why conferences of this nature had become necessary to discuss the problems and difficulties faced in implementation and how to overcome them.
Significantly the Supreme Court today referred the controversial 27 per cent reservation issue to the Constitutional bench to examine whether the government has got unbridled powers to evolve reservation policies without any restrictions.
Meanwhile at the Conference, Rio strongly mooted the setting up of more technical and job oriented institutions in the tribal areas to provide a solution to this anomaly of unutilized reservations. He stated that Nagaland, from the days of headhunting less than a century ago, had already achieved a literacy rate much above the national average however he emphasized that mere literacy was not enough and that the quality of education must improve and that technical study opportunities for students of Nagaland should be increased.
The two day Conference on Empowerment of SCs, STs, and Minorities through Elementary Education was inaugurated by the Prime Minister and Leader of Opposition by lighting a lamp this morning. The Chief Minister of Nagaland was accompanied by MLA Naiba Konyak and MLA Medukhul Sophie. The conference will go on till May 18, 2008.
With inputs from DIPR
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