Opinion - Letters to the Editor   

Reservation in jobs

This refers to the article "Who is perpetuating reservation in jobs?"(July 7) by Sharad Yadav. I am one of the thousands of candidates burning the midnight oil to get into the civil service. We aspirants have a right to know what the UPSC has to say on Mr. Yadav's observations.

By following an undeclared reservation policy of 50.50 per cent for the forward castes, the UPSC is doing a great disservice to the nation and its constitutional foundations.

A. Jesuraj,
Manaparai, T.N.

* * *

Mr. Yadav needs to be commended for exposing the manner in which the reservation policy is being implemented by the UPSC. It is intentional and institutionalised misapplication of a progressive policy.

Ramakrishna Bantu,
Hyderabad

* * *

As pointed out in the article, there are various types of discriminations — which cannot be seen openly — in Central Government organisations. Lowering the scores of meritorious students belonging to the OBC in personal interviews is one of them. Though it is an open secret, candidates do not challenge the UPSC because they have to prepare for the next year's examination and face the interview board again.

P. Sivakumar,
Bareilly, U.P.

* * *

The 50.50 per cent reservation policy for the forward castes is clearly against the true spirit of reservation, which is to help people with socio-economic disadvantages. Reservation in jobs does not and should not mean dividing the jobs among different communities into airtight compartments. It is time the Supreme Court examined the issue.

Ratnamani Singh,
New Delhi

* * *

It is unfortunate that the UPSC, symbol of merit, discriminates on the basis of caste. The news however does not come as a surprise because we have heard of candidates from the south being discriminated against.

R. Sudha,
Erode, T.N.

* * *

Mr. Yadav says the UPSC denies meritorious students of reserved categories the right to join the civil services as general category candidates. When the number of efficient candidates among OBCs has increased to such an extent that they are able to compete in the open category, why continue with the reservation policy?

D. Ravi Krishna,
Hyderabad

* * *

Mr. Yadav has argued that those who seek the exclusion of the creamy layer from reservation do so to deny the benefit to the less privileged. He should first tell us for whom reservation is meant and when will we be ready to declare the backward, forward? If assets worth of crores and reservation do not make a backward forward what else will? It is a tragedy of gigantic proportions that instead of bringing the backward into the mainstream, the mainstream is itself being made backward.

V.N. Balakrishna,
Ahmedabad

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