Andhra Pradesh CM N Chandrababu Naidu.
Credit: Reuters Photo
Hyderabad: Following Telangana's lead, Andhra Pradesh has issued an ordinance notifying Scheduled Caste (SC) sub-categorisation.
After receiving approval from Governor Justice Abdul Nazeer, the state law department released a gazette notification on Thursday to formalize the ordinance.
Two days earlier, the state cabinet had approved dividing SC reservations into three groups: Group-I comprises 12 sub-castes with 1 per cent reservation; Group-II includes 18 sub-castes allocated 6.5 per cent reservation; and Group-III consists of 29 sub-castes who will receive 7.5 per cent quota.
The government issued this ordinance to implement these reservations in educational and employment opportunities. The upcoming mega DSC notification will also incorporate this categorisation.
The Rajiv Ranjan Mishra Commission recently submitted a report to the government on SC sub-categorisation, which the Cabinet subsequently approved. The commission recommended using the state as a unit for categorization, though MLAs had proposed district-level units.
After deliberation, the Cabinet decided to implement state-level categorization based on the 2011 census data, with plans to transition to district-level categorisation after the 2026 census. The Cabinet also resolved to include Budaga Jangams and another caste in the SC category.
Last month, the one-member commission headed by Rajiv Ranjan Mishra submitted its findings after conducting extensive inquiries across combined districts. The commission examined the reservation system, economic self-reliance of SC sub-groups, and other relevant aspects.
It gathered petitions, requests, and opinions from SC sub-castes throughout the state before finalizing its recommendations. Based on this comprehensive report, the Cabinet discussed and approved the SC categorisation proposal, culminating in the ordinance issued after Governor Justice Abdul Nazeer's approval.