Even as the issue of reservation in education and Government jobs is becoming headache for couple of BJP-ruled State Governments, including Gujarat, Union Minister for Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution Ram Vilas Paswan advocated reservation in private sector.
Addressing a Press conference in Ahmedabad on Monday, Paswan went on to say that the Union Government should think in the direction of reservation in the private sector for the candidates coming under Schedule Caste (SC) and Schedule Tribe (ST) categories. lands of backward class people are being taken away and their youth force to take wrong path in search of livelihood, he said, adding that hence it is essential to keep special quota for SC/ST in private sector jobs apart from the Government sector.
“Government jobs cannot be provided for everybody. The Government can only create an environment for job creation,” said Paswan, adding that in case a private sector firm or company takes funds from the Government, they should adopt reservation policy of the Government. He further said that his political outfit lok Janshakti Party (lJP), which is part of the BJP-led NDA Government, had demanded this provision earlier too. He however praised efforts of Modi Government saying that the Central Government gives priority to Babasaheb Ambedkar and developing his memorial at his birthplace Mhow in Madhya Pradesh.
Taking a dig at his own State’s Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and his Government, the lJP chief claimed that reservation should be for the upliftment of the backward class people but caste shouldn’t be used for political gains. The Government in Bihar is the result of caste based politics, added the Member of Parliament from Hajipur constituency in Bihar.
The 69-year-old Minister also informed that the National Food Security Act (NFSA) will be implemented in 10 more States from fiscal 2016-17 (from April 1st). Already 11 States have implemented NFSA, said Paswan. He also hinted about computerisation in public distribution system (PDS).