Historical Events in OBC Reservation

Here are the historical events in the OBC Commission that led to the reservation for the backward classes:

• The First Backward Classes Commission by Article 340 of the Indian constitution was set up in 1953 under the chairmanship of Kaka Kalelkar. The commission was thus commonly referred to as the Kalelkar Commission. It was the first commission to recognize disadvantaged sections other than the SCs and STs, known as the Other Backward Classes (OBCs). It had recognized more than 800 castes as ‘most backward’ and recommended up to 70 percent reservation of seats for such strata.
• Following this, the second backward classes commission led by BP Mandal also concluded that caste is a primary indicator of backwardness. The commission claimed the OBC population to be 52 percent. After the Indira Sawhney vs Union of India case, the Supreme Court capped reservations for SCs, STs, and OBCs at 50 percent. Jobs in the central government were reserved at 27 percent for OBCs.

National Commission For Backward Classes: Besides the communities that fall under scheduled caste and scheduled tribes, there are some socially and educationally deprived groups referred to as the other backward classes. It was observed that this community bears the brunt of being socially exploited and does not have full accessibility to educational opportunities. For the upliftment of the other backward classes, the Indian government established a national commission for the other backward classes on 14th August 1993. The commission came into the establishment after the Supreme Court’s on the Indra Sawhney vs Union of India case.

The primary function of National Commission For Backward Classes is the protection and promotion of the interests of other backward classes. In addition, the socially and educationally disadvantaged communities have special provisions safeguarding their interests in the Indian constitution. The latest data (2004-2005) by the National Sample Survey Organisation cities that OBCs constitute about 41 percent of the population.

In this article, we have provided every detail on National Commission For Backward Classes (NCBC), including its members, historical events, Constitutional Provisions, duties, powers, and functions of NCBC.