SRINAGAR, Mar 17: Citing official figures of Below Poverty Line (BPL) population in Kashmir Valley, Peoples Conference president Sajad Gani Lone has asked the J&K government to reconsider the asset-based criteria under the Economically Weaker Section (EWS) category for reservation in jobs and admissions.
In a post on X, Lone said that the BPL population in Kashmir exceeds that of Jammu, yet only one out of nine qualifiers in the EWS category in the recent KAS examination was from Valley.
“The number of souls in the Below Poverty Line Category (Antyodaya Anna Yojana + Priority Households) in Kashmir Valley exceeds that in Jammu,” Lone said, citing official figures of 37.71 lakh in Kashmir compared to 29.81 lakh in Jammu.
He pointed out that in response to his questions in the Assembly, the government revealed that only 7.7% and 8.6% of certificates issued under the EWS category were from Kashmir.
He said the problem lies in the criteria for granting these certificates.
“While almost all BPL population in Kashmir falls within the income criteria for issuing these certificates, the asset-related conditions, especially the size of the residential house and residential plot ensures exclusion of Kashmiris from the EWS category,” he said.
Citing the district-wise BPL population of Kashmir, Lone said that asset-based criteria is grave injustice with people of the Valley.
“It is grave injustice with people of Kashmir. We have 5. 09 lakh BPL souls in Srinagar, 5. 21 lakh in Kupwara 5. 79 lakh in Baramulla and 5. 76 lakh in Anantnag,” he said, adding that EWS certificates could have been a major confidence building measure for old city Srinagar, old town Baramulla, Anantnag , Budgam and parts of Sopore.
Lone appealed to the Chief Minister to address the issue urgently, stating that continuing recruitment without correcting the criteria would amount to injustice. “All reservations are heavily tilted towards Jammu. This particular category is tilted towards Jammu because of government norms, not because Kashmir is rich and Jammu is poor,” he said.
He asked why Jammu & Kashmir cannot do away with asset-based norms.
“It is time to study what states like Rajasthan and Kerala have done. If they have done away with asset-related conditions, why cannot we?” Lone asked.
