Even as the state govt announced a 10 per cent quota for the economically backward classes (EBC) among the non-reserved category, it is still unclear whether an ordinance will restrict the benefit to ‘upper castes’ and what its definition would be. However, as on date, the non-reserved category includes the Patidars, who form 15 per cent of the total population of Gujarat, apart from Brahmins, Baniyas, Jains, Muslims and other minority communities. Moreover, according to the state govt, about 70 per cent of the non-reserved category would fall under the Rs 6 lakh annual income, a cap set for the EBC quota. A brief look at Gujarat’s socio-economic scenario:
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