After a long period of inactivity as a writer, I decided it was high time I get down to writing, but what to write about? Where do I get a topic that matters? And then it hit me. The thing I have been cribbing about almost my whole life, the quota system.
Now, before all those people who are beneficiaries of this get all indignant, let me explain my basic problem with it. Putting my ‘general’ biased hatred aside I am not essentially against the idea of quota system. What I am against is what it has become now.
I know there was deep rooted caste discrimination during the time India got its independence. To ensure that the discriminated and marginalised sects of the population do not get left behind, the quota system was incorporated to give them a helping hand towards attaining better social status. What the makers of our country did not know then that instead of just becoming a help, the quota system would actually become a crutch.
No matter how many of the OBC/SC/ST quota people start shouting at my claim, I steadfastly stand by my opinion. Perhaps my bias is clouding my judgment. But nevertheless, I believe it to be true. Only a student who falls in the general category will understand what I mean. After having slogged night and day so that we get a shot at our dream colleges and universities, we find out we did not make it by just a few marks. As disheartening as that is, nothing is worse than seeing some people who benefit from quotas actually whiling away their time because they are going to get in any way since the cut offs for them are so low! No, I do not blame these people. Nor am I trying to defame them.
What I am indignant is about the education system which keeps a distance of miles between general cut offs and quota cut offs. Since I am a student of Delhi University, I can give you several examples I see every day. M. Sc entrance exam cut offs out of 300 for general students is somewhere around 130-140, whereas for SC/ST, it is a single digit!!! How does that give a boost to the marginalised sect? It only encourages them not to work hard to earn that position. Also, it severely deteriorates the quality of the workforce later on, since half the people did not actually have to work that hard to get there.
No doubt, there are many hardworking people who fall under the quota categories, and it’s a relief for them when they actually get a relaxation due to the quota. It does actually seem to be a good thing for them. But despite this fact, the current quota system is a severely lopsided one.
Delhi University releases up to 11-12 cut off lists for the students who fall under the quotas, against the 2-3 lists for general students. How is that fair? I have nothing against the students who benefit from quotas, what I have a problem with is the system which makes a mockery of the benevolent vision of the makers of our nation. It only makes ‘general’ students more resentful, since we hardly ever get a result out of the work we put in. As ironical as it sounds, now the general category people have become a minority in terms of benefits, it seems. Maybe our forefathers have achieved what they were aiming for, albeit in a twisted way.
I do not wish to offend people, but this article will inevitably do so, but this is just what I feel. All I wished to do was to put forth the woes of “my people”. My demand is only one; to make the system fairer. Give away as many quotas and relaxations as you want. But do make it seem like a help, not a Christmas charity giveaway. Give competent people a chance, no matter what status or ancient caste system they are burdened with.
