What is Affirmative Action?

Affirmative action in India refers to a set of constitutionally mandated policies designed to uplift historically disadvantaged communities by reserving seats in education, public employment, and legislatures. Unlike the Western model based primarily on race and gender, India's system is rooted in caste, tribe, and economic backwardness, making it one of the oldest and most extensive affirmative action programmes in the world.

The Indian Constitution provides for reservation under Articles 15(4), 15(5), 16(4), and 46, empowering the State to make special provisions for Scheduled Castes (SCs), Scheduled Tribes (STs), Other Backward Classes (OBCs), and Economically Weaker Sections (EWS). The 103rd Constitutional Amendment Act, 2019 introduced 10% reservation for EWS in education and public employment, upheld by the Supreme Court in Janhit Abhiyan v. Union of India (2022).

Currently, reservation in central government services stands at 15% for SCs, 7.5% for STs, and 27% for OBCs, totalling 49.5%. In central higher education institutions, the combined reservation reaches 49.5% (22.5% SC/ST + 27% OBC), with an additional 10% for EWS bringing the effective total to 59.5%.

The philosophical justification for affirmative action in India rests on the principle of substantive equality — the idea that treating unequals equally perpetuates inequality. The Constitution framers, led by Dr B.R. Ambedkar, recognised that centuries of caste-based discrimination could not be remedied through formal legal equality alone. Affirmative action in India thus goes beyond anti-discrimination law to include positive discrimination through reserved seats, relaxed eligibility criteria, and targeted welfare programmes. The debate continues to evolve around questions of adequacy, efficiency, creamy layer exclusion, and whether new criteria (economic backwardness) should supplement or replace caste-based identification.

Key Features

# Feature Details
1 Constitutional Basis Articles 15(4), 15(5), 16(4), 16(4A), 16(4B), 46, 340, 341, 342
2 Beneficiary Groups SCs (15%), STs (7.5%), OBCs (27%), EWS (10%) in central services
3 50% Ceiling Set by Indra Sawhney v. Union of India (1992); EWS quota exceeds this
4 Creamy Layer Applies to OBCs (income above Rs 8 lakh excluded); not applicable to SC/ST
5 Sub-Classification SC/ST sub-quotas permitted by Supreme Court ruling of 1 August 2024 (6:1 verdict)
6 Promotion Reservation Articles 16(4A) and 16(4B) allow reservation in promotions for SCs/STs
7 Education Applies to admissions in all central and state-funded institutions
8 Political Reservation SC/ST seats reserved in Lok Sabha (Art. 330) and State Assemblies (Art. 332)
9 Education (Private) 93rd Amendment + Art. 15(5) allows reservation in private unaided institutions
10 Duration Political reservation extended till 2030 (104th Amendment, 2020)

Current Status / Latest Data

  • August 2024: Supreme Court ruled 6:1 in favour of allowing states to create sub-quotas within SC/ST reservations, overturning the 2004 E.V. Chinnaiah precedent. This landmark verdict means states can now prioritise the most backward communities within the SC/ST lists.
  • Bihar proposed raising total reservation to 85% (including 65% for backward classes), sparking national debate on the 50% cap set by the Supreme Court in the Indra Sawhney case.
  • Maharashtra extended Maratha benefits via Kunbi certificates under existing OBC quota frameworks, after the Supreme Court struck down the separate Maratha reservation under the SEBC Act.
  • Several states (Tamil Nadu at 69%, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand) operate with reservation exceeding 50%, protected under the Ninth Schedule.
  • The National Commission for Backward Classes (NCBC), given constitutional status by the 102nd Amendment (2018), continues to recommend inclusions and exclusions from the OBC list.
  • Lateral entry into civil services (announced 2024) drew criticism for bypassing reservation norms; the proposal was subsequently withdrawn after opposition from SC/ST groups.
  • The EWS reservation criterion of Rs 8 lakh annual income threshold remains contentious, with demands for revision based on inflation and regional cost-of-living differences.

UPSC Exam Corner

Prelims: Key Facts

  • 50% ceiling was set by the Indra Sawhney case (1992), not by the Constitution directly
  • EWS reservation was introduced by the 103rd Amendment (2019), upheld in 2022 by a 3:2 verdict
  • Article 16(4A) — reservation in promotions for SCs/STs; Article 16(4B) — carry-forward of unfilled vacancies
  • Creamy layer concept applies only to OBCs, not to SCs/STs (as per current SC rulings)
  • NCBC was given constitutional status by the 102nd Amendment (2018) under Article 338B
  • Article 340 empowers the President to appoint a Commission to investigate backward classes
  • Political reservation for SCs/STs in legislatures has been extended multiple times, most recently for 10 years by the 104th Amendment (2020), valid until 2030

Mains: Probable Themes

  1. Evaluate whether the 50% cap on reservation remains relevant after the EWS quota and state-level expansions
  2. Critically analyse the Supreme Court's 2024 ruling on sub-classification of SCs/STs and its implications for intra-group equity
  3. Discuss the tension between formal equality (Article 14) and substantive equality (Articles 15, 16) in India's reservation framework
  4. Should affirmative action shift from caste-based to economic criteria? Examine with examples
  5. "Reservation has achieved political empowerment but not social transformation." Evaluate this claim in the context of Dalit and tribal communities

Sources: Reservation in India — Wikipedia, Vajirao & Reddy — Reservation Part I, SAGE Journals — Affirmative Action in New India (2025)