New Delhi, Feb. 12: Firm and consistent goading and monitoring by the Centre without any job reservation seems to be having the desired effect in terms of increasing Muslim recruitment for government jobs. As per the latest data available with the government,
the percentage of Muslims being recruited has increased from 6.92 per cent in 2006-07 to 9.19 per cent in 2008-09.
The steady rise in the recruitment graph was evident in 2007-08 too when the percentage of minority recruits was 8.23 per cent. The gradual increase is being achieved without any relaxation in eligibility norms for recruiting the minorities.
The push from the Central government to encourage employment of minorities, particularly Muslims, began after the seminal Sachar report which gave a detailed account of the poor socio-economic and educational condition of the country’s Muslims. It had noted: "Muslims’ shares in employment in various departments are abysmally low at all levels." It had also drawn attention to the fact that in most government departments and PSUs, the share of Muslim workers did not exceed five per cent.
UPA-I, and now UPA-II, is trying to increase this share simply by urging ministries, departments and PSUs to hire more persons from the minority community. As for the 15 per cent reservation for backward Muslims and Christians suggested by the Ranganath Misra Commission, the government at present is busy eliciting the opinion of various Central ministries.
The most significant jump in terms of minority recruitment has been shown by the railways, the country’s largest provider of government jobs. The minority share in recruitment by the railways increased from 2.67 per cent in 2006-07 to 8.31 per cent in 2008-09.
Central ministries and departments, too, seem to be faring well — while 8.37 per cent belonged to the minorities in 2006-07, it increased to 13.04 per cent by 2008-09.
The paramilitary forces had an even higher percentage of 10.2 in minority recruitment in 2008-09. However, the graph did not show as sharp an increase as the railways given that in 2006-07 minority recruitment in the paramilitary comprised 9.49 per cent of those hired.
PSUs, however, don’t seem to be faring so well in providing jobs to the minorities. In 2006-07, 11.88 per cent of those employed by PSUs belonged to the minorities. The minority share in the pie dipped to 5.52 per cent in 2007-08 but increased to 7.9 per cent the following year.
Even public sector banks and financial institutions need to do more in terms of giving jobs to the minorities. While they gave employment to 6.93 per cent and 10.19 per cent minority community members of the total hired in 2006-07 and 2007-08 respectively, the percentage dipped to 8.87 per cent in 2008-09 even though a total 48,070 persons were hired.
Parul Chandra