Rajasthan govt approves 1% reservation for Gujjars, four other backward castes

Jaipur: The Rajasthan government on Thursday decided to provide the Gujjars and four other communities one percent reservation within the 50 percent limit while retaining their OBC status. The Cabinet gave a green signal to this proposal. [caption id=“attachment_4270035” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File image of Rajasthan chief minister Vasundhara Raje. AFP[/caption] Earlier, the Gujjar community had threatened the government with protests if its demand for job quotas was not met. With this decision, the Gujjars can seek benefits in educational institutions and in getting jobs. The allotment of one percent reservation to five communities completes the 50 percent quota limit for reservations in Rajasthan. As the present overall reservation percentage in the state stands at 49 percent, the government decided to give one percent additional reservation to these communities. The same formula was earlier adopted by the previous Congress government. Though it may not satisfy the Gujjars, the government feels it will pacify them for now. The state government had tried thrice to find a workable solution to the Gujjars’ reservation demand but the court had been annulling all its proposals on different grounds.