NEW DELHI : The Union Cabinet today gave its approval for making amendments in the Central List of Other Backward Classes (OBCs) in respect of 13 States and three Union Territories. The states are Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Goa, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Punjab, Tamil Nadu, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal and the three Union Territories are Chandigarh, Delhi and Puducherry. The amendments include correction, inclusion, deletion of castes/communities according to advice received from the National Commission for Backward Classes (NCBC). The amendments will notify 115 changes recommended by the NCBC. The proposed changes will enable persons belonging to these castes/communities to avail benefits of reservation in government services and posts as well as in central educational institutions according to existing policy. They will also become eligible for benefit under various welfare schemes and scholarships among others being administered by the Central Government, which are at present available to persons belonging to the OBCs. The NCBC was set up in pursuance to the Supreme Court judgement in the Indira Sawhney case. The Commission is empowered to examine requests for inclusion of any class of citizens as a backward class in the lists and hear complaints of over-inclusion or under-inclusion of any backward class in such lists and tender such advice to the Central Government as it deems appropriate. The advice of the Commission would ordinarily be binding upon the Central Government. (AGENCIES)
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