Amid growing unrest among the other backward classes (OBCs), Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Monday held a meeting with the OBC ministers and discussed a whole range of issues including recruitment, scholarship, and allocation of more funds for various corporations.
Today’s meeting is crucial as the OBC ministers Chhagan Bhujbal and Vijay Wadettiwar have been quite vocal on the alleged step-motherly treatment to the community compared with the politically influential Maratha community.
At today’s meeting, Bhujbal and Wadettiwar discussed 22 demands pertaining to the OBC community.
Bhujbal, who is the food and civil supply minister, and Wadettiwar, who holds relief and rehabilitation minister, have said they are not against the 12% quota in education and 13% in government jobs to the Maratha community but they want the government should not touch the OBC’s 27% reservation for that.
Bhujbal told Free Press Journal, "Recruitment, promotion, scholarship payment, removal of backlog and more importantly higher allocation for the various corporations working for OBC development. At present, of the Rs 3,000 crore budgetary allocation, Rs 2,000 crore is spent on scholarship and Rs 1,000 crore on welfare and development schemes of nomadic tribes. We have made an additional budgetary allocation of Rs 2,000 crore to the OBC Corporations and other schemes.’’ He said CM and Deputy CM Ajit Pawar are quite positive to address these issues.
Bhujbal said the government may allocate additional funds in the supplementary demands to be tabled during the ensuing winter session of the state legislature slated for December 14 and 15 in Mumbai.
Wadettiwar, who last week had declared that he would sacrifice ministership for fighting the OBC cause, said the CM and DCM have assured additional funds for the OBC department and undertakings.
"I am fully satisfied with the intervention by CM and DCM,’’ he noted.
A statement issued by the CM’s office said the issues with regard to a backlog in the recruitment of OBCs, vimukta jati and nomadic tribes, scholarship, additional fund allocation, and various concessions for these communities were discussed at Monday’s meeting.
