OBCs Form Significant Chunk Of Urban Uttar Pradesh, Represent 37-41 Per Cent Of Population: Panel Report

The UP State Local Bodies Dedicated Backward Classes Commission's report recommending OBC quota for local body elections has been made public by the state urban development department, as directed by the Allahabad High Court.

The report indicates that in urban areas of Uttar Pradesh, OBCs make up 37 to 41 per cent of the population. It is estimated that the urban population in Uttar Pradesh is 4.78 crore.

According to the 505-page report, there are 1.76 crore OBCs (37 per cent overall), 2.4 crore individuals belonging to the general category, including Muslims (49 per cent), 65 lakh SCs (14 per cent), and 1.03 lakh STs.

The commission has recommended a 27 per cent reservation for the OBC community because, stated the commission, of the challenges they face regarding their social, economic and educational status.

Out of the seven political parties that were invited to give their suggestions, the commission received responses only from the BJP, the SP, and the RLD, as the BSP, Congress, Aam Aadmi Party and Communist Party of India did not participate in the survey.

Interestingly, the BJP, the SP, and the RLD were on the same page regarding the proposal to offer reservation to OBCs for the local body elections. They were united in demanding 27 per cent reservation for the community, which was the same as in previous elections.

The report documents that the population of OBCs is lower in bigger cities but higher in smaller towns.

In 17 nagar nigams, OBCs account for 25.58 per cent, while in 200 nagar palikas (municipal councils) and 545 nagar panchayats (town councils), their ratio is on the higher side as the community members constituted 42.29 per cent and 49.55 per cent, respectively.

The commission also stated that the procedure that the urban development department followed during the rotation process while reserving seats for the posts of mayors and chairpersons needed improvement.

Citing the example of Maharajganj, the commission noted that the position for nagar palika chairperson was continuously reserved for SC candidates, even though OBCs constituted 51 per cent of the population. Similar issues were noticed in the rotation process being followed for the post of chairperson in nagar palikas in Hardoi and Bijnor.

Ram Autar Singh, a retired judge of the Allahabad High Court, led a team of four members who compiled the report within three months. The other members were Chob Singh Verma, Brijesh Kumar, Mahedra Kumar, and Santosh Kumar Vishwakarma. The ULB elections in Uttar Pradesh are scheduled to be held in two phase: on 4 May and 11 May.

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