India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
's National Commission for Backward Classes is a constitutional body (123rd Constitutional Amendment Bill, 2017 and
102nd Amendment Act, 2018 in the constitution to make it a constitutional body under Article 338B of the Indian Constitution) under the
Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment
The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment is a Government of India ministry. It is responsible for welfare, social justice and empowerment of disadvantaged and marginalised sections of society, including scheduled castes (SC), Other Backwar ...
, established on 14 August 1993. It was constituted pursuant to the provisions of the National Commission for Backward Classes Act, 1993.
Statutory backing
The commission was the outcome of
Indra Sawhney & Others v. Union of India. The
Supreme Court
A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...
of India in its Judgement dated 16.11.1992 in Writ Petition (Civil) No. 930 of 1990 – Indra Sawhney & Ors. Vs. Union of India and Ors., reported in (1992) Supp. 3 SCC 217 directed the Government of India, State Governments and Union Territory Administrations to constitute a permanent body in the nature of a Commission or Tribunal for entertaining, examining and recommending upon requests for inclusion and complaints of over-inclusion and under-inclusion in the list of OBCs. The Supreme Court held that the Constitution recognised only social and educational – and not economic – backwardness.
The number of backward castes in Central list of OBCs has now increased to 5,013+ (without the figures for most of the Union Territories) in 2006 as per National Commission for Backward Classes. In October 2015, National Commission for Backward Classes proposed that a person belonging to OBC with an annual family income of up to ₹15 lakhs should be considered as minimum ceiling for OBC. NCBC also recommended sub-division of OBCs into 'backward', 'more backward' and 'extremely backward' blocs and divide 27% quota amongst them in proportion to their population, to ensure that stronger OBCs don't corner the quota benefits.
Constitutionality
According to article 340 of the Indian Constitution, President shall establish a commission to examine the condition of social and backward class.
Composition
According to Article 338B.
(2) Subject to the provisions of any law made in this behalf by Parliament, the Commission shall consist of a Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson and three other Members and the conditions of service and tenure of office of the Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson and other Members so appointed shall be such as the President may by rule determine.
(3) The Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson and other Members of the Commission shall be appointed by the President by warrant under his hand and seal.
(4) The Commission shall have the power to regulate its own procedure.
Current members
The commission currently consists of following members
Functions and power
The commission considers inclusions in and exclusions from the lists of communities notified as backward for the purpose of job reservations and tenders the needful advice to the Central Government as per Section 9(1) of the NCBC Act, 1993. Similarly, the states have also constituted commissions for BC's. over two thousand groups have been listed as OBCs. The National Commission for Backward Classes, National Commission for Scheduled Castes as well as National Commission for Scheduled Tribe
have the same powers as a Civil Court. Initially National Commission for Backward Classes was not empowered to look into the grievances of persons of Other Backward Classes (under Article 338(5) read with Article 338(10) of the Constitution, National Commission for Scheduled Castes was the competent authority to look into all the grievances, rights and safeguards relating to Backward Classes). But consequent to the 102nd Constitutional Amendment Act and the insertion of Article 338B, these powers are now vested in NCBC.
According to Article 338B(5)
It shall be the duty of the Commission—
#to investigate and monitor all matters relating to the safeguards provided for the socially and educationally backward classes under this Constitution or under any other law for the time being in force or under any order of the Government and to evaluate the working of such safeguards;
#to inquire into specific complaints with respect to the deprivation of rights and safeguards of the socially and educationally backward classes;
#to participate and advise on the socio-economic development of the socially and educationally backward classes and to evaluate the progress of their development under the Union and any State;
#to present to the President, annually and at such other times as the Commission may deem fit, reports upon the working of those safeguards;
#to make in such reports the recommendations as to the measures that should be taken by the Union or any State for the effective implementation of those safeguards and other measures for the protection, welfare and socio-economic development of the socially and educationally backward classes; and
#to discharge such other functions in relation to the protection, welfare and development and advancement of the socially and educationally backward classes as the President may, subject to the provisions of any law made by Parliament, by rule specify.
See also
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Socio Economic and Caste Census 2011
The Socio Economic and Caste Census 2011 (SECC) was conducted for the 2011 Census of India. The Manmohan Singh government approved the Socio Economic and Caste Census 2011 to be carried out after discussion in both houses of Parliament in 2010. ...
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Other Backward Classes
The Other Backward Class is a collective term used by the Government of India to classify castes which are educationally or socially backward. It is one of several official classifications of the population of India, along with General castes, S ...
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Creamy layer
Creamy layer is a term used in Indian politics to refer to some members of a backward class who are highly advanced socially as well as economically and educationally. They constitute the forward section of that particular backward class – as f ...
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National Commission for Socially and Educationally Backward Classes
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Caste system in India
The caste system in India is the paradigmatic ethnographic example of classification of castes. It has its origins in Outline of ancient India, ancient India, and was transformed by various ruling elites in medieval, early-modern, and modern ...
References
External links
Official website
{{Indian commissions
Reservation in India
Indian commissions and inquiries
1993 establishments in Delhi
Government agencies established in 1993