Abstract:

The preamble of Indian Constitution boasts of sovereign, secular, socialist, democratic republic, where constitutionally there is equality among people. But, unfortunately, the ‘caste system’ which has not been eroded, continues to be the basic framework in empowerment of SC/ST and Backward Communities by providing reservation in jobs and educational opportunities in government institutions. It is a fact that even after seventy two years of independence, and sixty nine years of formation of Indian Constitution, we find the rampant caste system. The differences among people based on caste system, has become very acute. It has become so acute that we have witnessed communal clashes in many regions of India. The non-relevant age old caste system has inbuilt inequality among people. The hierarchical caste system discriminates people as some are born great (like Brahmins) and some are born downtrodden (like dalits). As one finds the prevalence of caste system in the form of reservation in all the government sectors, it would not be incorrect to say that in India, people are born unequal: some having very high status and some having very low status. Under this provision of caste system, our constitution talks of providing equality among people by different means and measures of the government.
Although, the Indian constitution guarantees social justice and it tries to end the discrimination by various legislations and empowerment of socially weaker sections of society by means of reservations in government jobs and government educational institutions, the discrimination based on caste has not mitigated. Rather, it has accentuated and become acute. Providing reservation simply on the basis of caste irrespective of income status in case of scheduled castes and scheduled tribes has led to creation of ‘elite group’ among these communities. This elite group consisting of only a few castes (viz. Chamar, Jatav, Dhobi, Pasi and Balmiki in Scheduled Castes and Meena in Scheduled Tribes) have cornered more than 95 percent of benefits offered to SC and ST in general, whereas there are more than 900 castes listed in SC and 700 in ST communities (to be precise 944 castes in SC and 718 caste-in ST). The ‘elite group’ having advantages of social and economic status continues to grab more and more from provision of reservation in jobs and educational opportunities; thus further increasing the difference between the elite scheduled castes and scheduled tribes and general scheduled castes and scheduled tribes. The difference instead of getting mitigated has accentuated in the post-independence era of India. In case of OBC communities there is provision of creamy layer that forbids higher and upper class to get reservation in jobs and educational opportunities. In case of SC and ST communities, such creamy layer provision is not there. Thus, the reservation of SC and ST communities ignores a vast majority of people who cannot compete with the elite group of their own communities. There is specially a need to review the policy of reservation in case of SC. ST and OBC communities.
Under such explosive situations, the paper examines the problems of caste system and tries to suggest measures of development to be adopted on scientific criterion for assimilation of all communities irrespective of caste, creed, or inter religious differences congenial for the growth of the economy.

Keywords:

Casteless, endogamous, exogamous, egalitarian, caste hierarchy, SC- Scheduled Caste, ST- Scheduled Tribe, OBC- Officially Backward Communities.