According to Union Home and Cooperation Minister Amit Shah, the yearly ceiling for backward classes (BCs) in Haryana has been raised from ₹6 lakh to ₹8 lakh, per the central government.
Addressing a gathering at the state-level Backward Class Samman Sammelan in Mahendragarh, Shah said similar to the Centre’s decision, salary and income from agriculture will not be clubbed in this limit, and the decision will benefit lakhs of people.
In yet another move, the Haryana government has chosen to include BC (B) in the reservation area in panchayats, municipal corporations, and municipalities, according to the union home minister. These choices are now enforceable as of Tuesday.
Already, Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) have an 8% reservation set aside for the BC (A) category. In the PRI and urban local body elections, the BC-B category will now receive an extra 5% reservation.
According to Shah, the 5% reserve for BC (B) in panchayats and municipal bodies will not impact the 8% reservation for BC (A).
Recall that, prior to the PRI elections in 2022, the Haryana Cabinet adopted a draft ordinance granting reservation to a subcategory in the BC.
The Haryana Backward Classes Commission’s (HBCC) proposals for a quota to the BC (A) category in the polls were approved by the Cabinet.
Haryana also cleared the path in August 2023 for BC category-A reservations in municipal corporations, councils, and committees following the Cabinet’s acceptance of the State Backward Classes Commission’s recommendations in this regard.
The panel had suggested a percentage of reservation in municipal bodies for BC (A category).
The commission concluded that in order for the BC (A) to participate sufficiently in the grassroots democratic setup, reservations had to be made in the local body elections. This was because the BC (A) was judged to be inadequately represented in the political setup.
The ceremony was attended by Haryana BJP state president Mohan Lal Badauli, chief minister Nayab Singh Saini, and other notable BJP figures, such as Union ministers Rao Inderjit Singh, Krishan Pal Gurjar, and Dharmendra Pradhan.