State seeks details of Maratha officers from all govt depts

Pune: In the backdrop of the agitation by the Marathas demanding reservations, the State government has begun collecting data on Group A officers (direct recruitment) belonging to the community from various departments. The details will be submitted to the State Backward Class (SBC) Commission, which is preparing a report on the backwardness of the Maratha community.

The Maharashtra police, which is one of the biggest employers in the State, has written a letter to all police units seeking details of officers of the rank of Deputy Superintendent of Police (DySP)/ Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP). 

“The details of DySP/ACP (from the Maratha community) directly recruited under the open category should be sent immediately on email and the first page of their service book should be attached. 

The details have to be submitted to the State Backward Class Commission for the Maratha reservations,” ADG (Establishment) Sandip Bishnoi had written on July 24.

Officials from three commissionerates and district confirmed that they have already sent the details. Under Pune city police, there are a total of 25 ACPs, while the Pune rural police have nine DySPs.

The sanctioned strength of Maharashtra police is 2,14,004, which includes 1,95,367 members of constabulary, 17,489 police inspector/ API/ PSI, 822 DySP/ ACP, 232 SP/ DCP/ ASP, and 94 DIGP/ IGP/ AD/ DGP rank officers. 

The authorities from other government departments also confirmed that they had been asked to submit details of the Maratha community officers.

The SBC is supposed to examine data, conduct public hearings, verify the level of representation in the government and semi-government undertakings and give an indication of the social backwardness of the Maratha community, which forms around 33 per cent of the State population.  

The Maratha community members have been demanding reservations from past two decades. After the Mandal Commission Report recommendations were implemented, there was a demand for including the Marathas and the Kunbi community into the fold of the Other Backward Caste (OBC) reservations. 

After Indira Sahani became the new head of the State Backward Class Commission, the reservations were granted to the Kunbis, but those who had certificates with caste stated as Maratha, which is also synonymous with Kunbi, faced a problem. 

The Commission, when asked to reanalyse the recommendations to include the Marathas, gave an unfavourable report. The government then appointed a committee under Narayan Rane, known as the Rane Committee, which analysed the Bapat Commission Report and gave a report in favour of the Maratha demand, after which a GR for 16 per cent reservations was issued and during the new government passed an Act. 

The Act was stayed as inclusion of the Marathas would take the percentage of reservations over 50 per cent, a limit based on the interpretation and not a specific ceiling. Hence, the SBC is examining data of employees in all government departments.