SECTION I÷GENERAL

No. F. 14/17-B./33.÷In accordance with undertakings given in the Legislative Assembly the Government of India have carefully reviewed the results of the policy followed since 1925 of reserving a certain percentage of direct appointments to Government service for the redress of communal inequalities. It has been represented that though this policy was adopted mainly with the object of securing increased representation for Muslims in the public services, it has failed to secure for them their due share of appointments and it has been contended that this position cannot be remedied unless a fixed percentage of vacancies is reserved for Muslims. In particular, attention has been drawn to the small number of Muslims in the Railway services, even on those railways which run through areas in which Muslims form a high percentage of the total population.

The review of the position has shown that these complaints are justified, and the Government of India are satisfied by the enquiries they have made that the instructions regarding recruitment must be revised with a view to improving the position of Muslims in the services.

(2.) In considering this general question the Government of India have also to take into account the claims of Anglo-Indians and Domiciled Europeans and of the depressed classes. Anglo-Indians have always held a large percentage of appointments in certain branches of the public service and it has been recognised that, in view of the degree to which the community has been dependent on this employment, steps must be taken to prevent in the new conditions anything in the nature of a rapid displacement of Anglo-Indians from their existing positions, which might occasion a violent dislocation of the economic structure of the community. The instructions which follow in regard to the employment of Anglo-Indians and Domiciled Europeans in certain departments are designed to give effect to this policy.

(3.) In regard to the depressed classes it is common ground that all reasonable steps should be taken to secure for them a fair degree of representation in the public services. The intention of caste Hindus in this respect was formally stated in the Poona Agreement of 1932 and His Majesty's Government in accepting that agreement took due note of this point. In the present state of general education in these classes the Government of India consider that no useful purpose will be served by reserving for them a definite percentage of vacancies out of the number available for Hindus as a whole, but they hope to ensure that duly qualified candidates from the depressed classes are not deprived of fair opportunities of appointment merely because. they cannot succeed in open competition.

(4.) The Government of India have also considered carefully the position of minority communities other than those mentioned above and are satisfied that the new rules will continue to provide for them, as at present, a reasonable degree of representation in the services.
 

SECTION II÷SCOPE OF RULES

(5.) The Government of India propose to prescribe annual returns in order to enable them to watch the observance of the rules laid down below.

(6.) The general rules which the Government of India have with the approval of the Secretary of State adopted with the purpose of securing these objects are explained below. They relate only to direct recruitment and not to recruitment by promotion which will continue to be made as at present solely on merit. They apply to the Indian Civil Service, the Central Services, Class I and Class II, and the Subordinate Services under the administrative control of the Government of India with the exception of a few services and posts for which high technical or special qualifications are required, but do not apply to recruitment for these Services in the province of Burma. In. regard to the Railways, they apply to all posts other than those of inferior servants or labourers on the four State-managed Railways, and the administrations of the Company-managed Railways will be asked to adopt similar rules for the services on these Railways.
 

SECTION III÷RULES FOR SERVICES RECRUITED ON AN ALL-INDIA BASIS

(7.) (1) For the Indian Civil Service and the Central and Subordinate Services to which recruitment is made on an All-India basis, the following rules will be observed:÷

(i) 25 percent of all vacancies to be filled by direct recruitment of Indians, will be reserved for Muslims and 8 1/3 percent for other minority communities.

(ii) When recruitment is made by open competition, if Muslims or the other minority communities obtain less than these percentages, these percentages will be secured to them by means of nomination; if, however, Muslims obtain more than their reserved percentage in open competition, no reduction will be made in the percentage reserved for other minorities, while if the other minorities obtain more than their reserved percentage in open competition, no reduction will be made in the percentage reserved for Muslims.

(iii) If members of the other minority communities obtain less than their reserved percentage in open competition and if duly qualified candidates are not available for nomination, the residue of the 8 1/3 percent will be available for Muslims.

(iv) The percentage of 8 1/3 reserved for the other minorities will not be distributed among them in any fixed proportion.

(v) In all cases a minimum standard of qualification will be imposed and the reservations are subject to this condition.

(vi) In order to secure fair representation for the depressed classes duly qualified members of these classes may be nominated to a public service, even though recruitment to that service is being made by competition. Members of these classes, if appointed by nomination, will not count against the percentages reserved in accordance with clause (i) above.

SECTION IV÷RULES FOR SERVICES RECRUITED LOCALLY

(8.) In the case of all services to which recruitment is made by local areas and not on an All-India basis, e.g., subordinate posts in the Railways, Posts and Telegraphs Department, Customs Service, Income-tax Department, etc., the general rules prescribed above will apply subject to the following modifications:÷

(i) The total reservation for India as a whole of- 25 percent for Muslims and of 8 1/3 percent for other minorities will be obtained by fixing a percentage for each Railway or local area or circle having regard to the population ratio of Muslims and other minority communities in the area and the rules for recruitment adopted by the local Government of the area concerned;

(ii) In the case of the Railways and Posts and Telegraphs Department and Customs Service in which the Anglo-Indian and Domiciled European community is at present principally employed special provisions described in the next paragraph are required in order to give effect to the policy stated in paragraph 2 above.

(b) The reservation of 25 percent for Muslims and 8 percent for Anglo-Indians makes it necessary to increase the reservation of 33 1/3 percent, hitherto adopted for all minority communities, in order to safeguard the interests of minorities other than Muslims and Anglo-Indians. It has been decided, therefore, to reserve for them 6 percent of vacancies filled by direct recruitment, which is approximately the percentage of posts held by members of these communities at present. This total reservation will be obtained in the manner prescribed in paragraph 8 (1) of this Resolution and will not be further sub-divided among the minority communities.

(2) In the Posts and Telegraphs Department the same principles will be followed as in the case of the Railways for safeguarding the interests of the Anglo-Indian and Domiciled European community which at present holds about 2.2 percent of all subordinate posts. It has been ascertained that if a reservation is made for this community of 5 percent of the vacancies in the branches, departments or categories which members of this community may reasonably be expected to enter, it will result in securing for them a percentage equal to slightly less than the percentage of subordinate posts which they at present hold. In the departments or branches in which a special reservation is made for Anglo-Indians the reservation of vacancies for other minorities will be fixed so as to be equal approximately to the percentage of subordinate posts at present held by them. The total reservation for Anglo-Indians and other minority communities, other than Muslims, will in any case be not less than 8 1/3 percent

(3) Anglo-Indians are at present largely employed in subordinate posts in the Appraising Department and in the Superior Preventive Service at the major ports. For the former department special technical qualifications are required, and in accordance with the general principles indicated in paragraph 6 of this Resolution it will be excluded from the operation of these rules. In the Preventive Service special qualifications are required, and the present system of recruitment whereby posts are reserved for Anglo-Indians will be maintained.

ORDER.÷Ordered that this Resolution be communicated to all Local Governments and Administrations and the several Departments of the Government of India, for information ( and guidance) and that it be also published in the Gazette of India.
 

M. G. HALLET,
Secretary to the Government of India.
 

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/1/ Gazette of India, Part I, July 7, 1934.