Implementation of SC Act from today

Hyderabad: The Telangana government is all set to implement the Scheduled Castes (SC) Categorisation Act from April 14, coinciding with Ambedkar Jayanti. Telangana will become the first state in the country to roll out SC sub-categorisation following the Supreme Court's clearance.

The Act seeks to rationalise the existing 15% reservation for SCs by dividing 59 sub-castes into three groups based on relative backwardness. Group I consists of 15 of the most disadvantaged communities, comprising 3.288% of the SC population, and will receive 1% reservation.

Group II includes 18 moderately benefited communities, accounting for 62.74% of the SC population, and is allotted 9% reservation. Group III covers 26 relatively better-off communities, making up 33.963% of the SC population, and will be given 5% reservation. The state government had constituted the Shamim Akhtar Commission in October 2024, following the apex court's judgment, to examine socio-economic disparities among SC sub-castes. The Commission received over 8,600 representations and studied indicators such as population distribution, literacy rates, higher education enrollment, employment trends, financial aid access, and political participation.

Chairing the final meeting of the Cabinet Sub-Committee on SC Categorisation at the Secretariat, Welfare Minister N Uttam Kumar Reddy announced that a Government Order detailing the implementation modalities will be issued on April 14. The first copy will be formally handed over to Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy.

The Act was unanimously passed by the Telangana Legislative Assembly on March 18 and later approved by Governor Jishnu Dev Varma. The Cabinet Sub-Committee, however, rejected the Commission’s suggestion to introduce a creamy layer within the SC category. Reddy clarified that the government's goal is to ensure equitable distribution of benefits without excluding any sub-group based on economic criteria.