Malik Jehangir
SRINAGAR: The Jammu and Kashmir government has failed to provide Income and Asset Certificates to the applicants for availing benefits under 10 reservations for Economically Weaker Sections (EWSs) in civil posts and services and admission in educational institutions.
An RTI application moved by co-founder of Anthropological Society of Kashmir, Muzamil Rashid, seeking information related to issuance of EWS Certificates from the Public Information Officer General Administration Department J&K has revealed that till date only 73 certificates have been issued to the applicants in Jammu and Kashmir out of which 72 applicants are from Srinagar and Jammu city.
Only one certificate from village applicants has been accepted and is under process as per the information provided by different deemed PIO’s of J&K under RTI.
Following the reply Muzamil and many other applicants have alleged that only people from the city may be benefited under the 10 percent EWS reservation and the process leads to what is called as “rich get richer and poor get poorer”. 99 percent of the rural population not covered under other reservation categories seem to lag behind in seeking reservation under 10 percent EWS category.
The RTI applicant has said that the competent authorities have been reluctant in issuance of these certificates and most of the students who recently applied for NET-JRF Exam from the state could not produce these certificates.
Based on the criteria as specified in the guidelines the beneficiary under EWS must not have Residential Plot of 200 sq. yards and above or residential flat of 1000 sq. ft. and above if he or she belongs to rural area other than the notified municipalities. But unfortunately keeping the culture and the trend of life in J&K, even the poorest of the poor who are not covered under other reservation schemes use to build their pacca or kaccha houses on agricultural lands with more than 200 sq. yards.
“I had filed RTI application just to prove my perception right, that 10 percent EWS Reservation will not help people from rural areas of Jammu and Kashmir and only city people will be benefited. The government must change the criteria if they really want to help the poor”, said Muzamil.
In pursuance of Constitution (One Hundred and Third Amendment) Act, 2019 and as per notification issued by Government of India, Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions, Department of Personnel & Training, the benefit of Reservation under Economically Weaker Sections (EWSs) can be availed upon production of an Income and Asset Certificate issued by Competent Authority which shall be District Magistrate, Additional District magistrate, Sub-Divisional Magistrate and Tehsildar as per Circular No.19-GAD of 2019 Dated 30-3-2019.
The circular further reads that people who are not covered under the existing scheme of reservation for the Scheduled Castes, the Scheduled Tribes and Other Backward Classes (Central list as applicable to Jammu and Kashmir State) and whose family has gross annual income below eight lakhs are to be identified as Economically Weaker Sections (EWSs) for the benefit of reservation.