Nagaland restructures reservation review committee to ensure impartiality

Guwahati: The Nagaland government has restructured the committee responsible for reviewing the state’s reservation policy, following appeals from tribal organizations seeking a more neutral and balanced approach.

Government spokesperson K.G. Keyne stated that the government has named the newly reconstituted panel the Reservation Review Committee and staffed it entirely with senior officials.

The government dissolved the earlier committee, which included tribal or block-level representatives, and introduced the new composition to ensure impartiality.

R. Ramakrishna, former Development Commissioner, will chair the committee.

Senior officials from the Department of Personnel and Administrative Reforms (P&AR), the Law and Justice Department, and the Home Commissioner’s Office will serve as ex officio members.

The Commissioner and Secretary of P&AR will act as the Member Secretary.

The government has given the panel six months from its formation date to complete the review and submit its recommendations.

Keyne noted that the decision to reconstitute the body followed a memorandum submitted by the five tribes: Ao, Angami, Lotha, Rengma, and Sumi. These groups had advocated for a more neutral and official-led review process.

The government changed the committee's name from the Commission for Job Reservation Review to the Commission for Review of Reservation to reflect a broader scope.

The government acknowledged that reservation policies influence not only employment but also other social and administrative aspects.

Keyne added that the ongoing National Census Exercise would provide data to inform the review.

Keyne expressed hope that the new committee would bring clarity and resolution to a longstanding issue.

He stated that the government had taken into account views from multiple stakeholders and aimed to ensure fairness in the review process.

Calls to reassess Nagaland’s reservation policy have grown recently, especially after five tribal apex bodies submitted a joint memorandum.

They argued that the state’s reservation framework, introduced in 1977, no longer aligns with current socioeconomic conditions.

The original policy had provided for a 25 percent reservation for backward tribes, including 3 percent for the eastern backward area and 12 percent for other backward tribes, for a period of 10 years.

Over the years, tribal communities have raised concerns about imbalances in representation and evolving educational access.

The reconstituted committee is expected to present a revised framework that promotes equitable opportunities for all communities in the state.