Adversity is the greatest preceptor if it can impart lessons like this:
Chipping in 10,000 dollars each to counter HRD Minister Arjun Singh’s proposal to hike reservations in higher educational institutes such as IITs and IIMs, some IIT alumni from the 1969 Kanpur batch plan to set up preparatory schools for students in backward areas who want to enter engineering colleges and IITs.
My earlier post on reservations generated several angry responses. My stand, in simple terms: you don’t take a person from a mental asylum and make him the nation’s HRD minister because he’s been mistreated in the asylum for 20+ years.
Reservations should be extended only to people who are economically poor.
These IIT alumni folks are doing what the political parties promise during elections:
Even if you put a backward caste person into IIT, he needs to have years of education before—how does he become backward then? The challenge is to uplift the economically backward, irrespective of their caste,” he [Sharad Tripathi] says.
Touche!
Tags: Commentary, Indian Politics, Society & Culture
On 04.28.06 Niketan says:
This is more practical unlike what Shivam Vij, Praful Bidwai and their like have been arguing. - this is more practical.
Sai also has a good post on this. Ram on rediff has a practical case where the reservation policy has gone completely wrong. I have also seen such as case.
On 05.03.06 Parimal Gupta says:
i think it’s time SC/STs themself oppose these policies, because these policies harm them more than benefit. Also a survey should be carried , funded by corporate houses to prove the myth that “Upper” cast people have all the wealth and power. In reality if we consider the entire country i am sure this will be the order of wealth distribution..
No 1] OBCs will come out as the richest [ Yadavs, Rajputs all come under OBC. They hold most of the power and wealth and land in North of the country]
2] Relgious minorities like Christians and Muslims will come second. [ The richest man in country is muslim. Most of the Christians in Goa and Kerela are stinking rich. Goa and Kerela form the bulk of Christian population.]
3] Then will come the very rich Schedule Casts. [Yes i have personally known very rich of these people]
and 4] Finally will come the Brahmins. Brahmins will form the poorest group.
And i am talking in proportion to their population on percentage basis.
The reason being brahmins have traditioanlly been a salaried class people. I do not know of many rich brahmin business men, except may be a Narayan Murthy.
On the other hand , look at Amar Singh, Sharad Pawar, Mulayam, Laloo, Maran, Sonia Gandhi… to name a few. The richest people are either OBCs,Muslims or Christians. The real power and wealth lies in hands of these 3 groups today.
STs are the real under-privileged. And they have been oppressed not by Brahmins, but by OBCs over the years. The myth that Brahmins were the oppressers and OBCs were the victims should be busted.