Sunday 28 August 2011

इसको मत पढो अन्ना हजारे की बुरे है इसमे


Report of the Prime Minister’s High Level Committee


(headed by Justice Rajindar Sachar)
on Social, Economic and Educational Status of the
Muslim Community of India
Summarised by Dr. Syed Zafar Mahmood
The Milli Gazette
13 December 2006

While issuing notification during March 2005 the Prime Minister’s Office had 
noted that there is
lack of authentic information about the social, economic and educational status 
of the Muslim
community of India. The PMO had observed that such lack of information 
comes in the way of
planning, formulating and implementing specific interventions, policies and 
programmes to
address the issues relating to the socio-economic backwardness of this 
community. Hence, the
Prime Minister’s High Level Committee was mandated to obtain relevant 
information from
departments / agencies of the Central and State Governments and also 
conduct an intensive
literature survey to identify published data, articles and research on relevant 
status of Muslims in
India. The Committee was to find out the asset base and income levels of 
Muslims relative to
other groups across various states and regions. It had to find out the level of 
socio-economic
development of Muslims in terms of relevant indicators such as religious rate, 
drop out rate,
MMR, IMR etc. What is their relative share in public and private sector 
employment? Is this
share in proportion to their population in various states? If not, what are the 
hurdles? The
Committee was to find the proportion of OBCs from the Muslim community in 
the total OBC
population. Are the Muslim OBCs listed in the comprehensive list of OBCs, 
prepared by the
National and State Backward Classes Commissions. What is the share of 
Muslim OBCs in the
total public sector employment for OBCs. The Committtee had also to find out 
whether the
Muslim community has adequate access to the education and health services, 
municipal
infrastructure, bank credit and other services provided by the Government and 
public sector
entities. This was to be compared with the access enjoyed by the other 
communities. What is the
level of social infrastructure (schools, health centres, ICDS centres etc.) 
located in areas of
Muslim concentration in comparison to the general level of such infrastructure. 
The Committee
was to identify areas of intervention by the Government to address the 
relevant issues relating to
the social, economic and educational status of the Muslim community.

2. The Report which was presented to the Prime Minister on 17 November 
2006 and was tabled
in Parliament on 30 November 2006 has twelve chapters. Chapter I is 
introductory. Chapter II
talks of Public Perceptions and Perspectives gathered by the Committee during 
its widespread
interaction with the people and their representatives while it visited 13 most 
Muslim populous
states and organized 5 Round Table Conferences in Delhi. Chapter III deals 
with the population
size, distribution and health conditions of Muslims etc. In the subsequent 
chapters the Committee
has analyzed the educational condition of Muslims, their economy and 
employment, their access
to bank credits, their access to social and physical infrastructure, their poverty 
level and standard
of living, their participation in government employment and programmes and 
empirical situation
of Muslim OBCs. There is a separate chapter of Wakfs talking about economic 
potential of Wakf
assets, constraints regarding the fulfillment of Wakf objectives and 
suggestions for overcoming
such constraints. In the last chapter the Committee has given its 
recommendations.

3. The Committee noted that the public opinion in India was divided on 
reservation. Some
argued that policies that promote equality must aim at a substantive equal 
outcome, not merely
formal equal or identical treatment. Reservations or a separate quota for 
Muslims in employment
and educational institutions was viewed as a means to achieve this. Others felt 
that reservations
could become a thorny issue and have negative repercussions. Still others 
argued that good
educational facilities combined with non-discriminatory practices are adequate 
for Muslims to
compete. Those who argued for reservation policies often differed on who 
should be their
beneficiary. Some argued that this facility should only be available to ‘dalit’ 
Muslims, while
others suggested that the entire Community should benefit from it. For some 
an economic
criterion was an ideal basis for reservations. They felt that this would fail to 
address the problem
arising out of social discrimination. There were voices that questioned the non-
availability of the
Schedule Caste quota for Muslims while it was available to the followers of 
three religions.

4. A large cross section of the people was of the conviction that political 
participation and
representation in governance structures are essential to achieve equity. Many 
alleged that
participation is denied to Muslims through a variety of mechanisms. While it 
was pointed out
that many names of Muslims were missing in the voter lists of a number of 
states, the
Committee’s attention was also drawn to the issue of Muslim concentration 
constituencies of
Assemblies and Parliament declared as reserved for Schedule Caste persons 
while constituencies
with very low Muslim population but high SC concentration remain unreserved. 
Hence, it was
argued that Muslims are being systematically denied political participation. 
The Committee
collected data from all over the country in the light of which the second 
allegation regarding
reservation of constituencies was found to be correct. For the first allegation 
the Committee did
not collect any data.

5. In the field of literacy the Committee found that the rate among Muslims 
was far below the
national average. The gap between Muslims and the general average is 
greater in urban areas and women. 25 per cent of Muslim children in the 6-14 
year age group have either never attended
school or have dropped out. Expansion of educational opportunities since 
Independence has not
led to a convergence of attainment levels between Muslims and all others. 
Drop out rates among
Muslims are higher at the level of primary, middle and higher secondary. The 
Committee
observed that since artisanship is a dominant activity among Muslims technical 
training should
be provided to even those who may not have completed schooling. The 
disparity in graduation
attainment rates is widening since 1970s between Muslims and all other 
categories in both urban
and rural areas. In premier colleges only one out of 25 under-graduate 
students and one out of 50
post-graduate students is a Muslim. Unemployment rate among Muslim 
graduates is the highest
among all socio-religious communities. Only 3% of Muslim children among the 
school going
age go to Madarsas. There is dearth of facilities for teaching Urdu. Lower 
enrolment in Urdu
medium schools is due to limited availability of such schools at the elementary 
level.

6. The Committee found that Muslim parents are not averse to mainstream 
education or to send
their children to affordable Government schools. But the access to government 
schools for
Muslim children is limited. There is non-availability of schools within easy 
reach for girls at
lower levels. Absence of girls hostels and female teachers are also impeding 
factors. The changes
in the educational patterns across the various religious groups and 
communities suggests that the
schedule castes and schedule tribes have definitely reaped the advantages of 
targeted government
and private action supporting their educational progress. This reflects the 
importance of
affirmative action. The sharper focus on school education combined with more 
opportunities in
higher education for Muslims seems desirable. Moreover, skill development 
initiatives for those
who have not completed school education may also be particularly relevant for 
some sections of
Muslims given their occupational structure.

7. Bidi workers, tailors and mechanics need to be provided with social safety 
nets and social
security. The participation of Muslims in the professional and managerial cadre 
is low. Muslim
regular workers are the most vulnerable with no written contract and social 
security benefits.
Muslim regular workers get lower daily earnings in both public and private jobs 
compared to
other socio-religious communities. Since a large number of Muslim workers are 
engaged in
self-employment, skill development and credit related initiatives need to be 
tailored for such
groups.

8. The average amount of bank loan disbursed to the Muslims is 2/3 of the 
amount disbursed to
other minorities. In some cases it is half. The Reserve Bank of India’s efforts to 
extend banking
and credit facilities under the Prime Minister’s 15-point programme of 1983 
has mainly
benefited other minorities marginalizing Muslims. Muslim community is not 
averse to banking
and more improvements can be brought about with specific measures. 
Inadequate targeting and
geographical planning has resulted in a failure to address the economic 
problems of Muslims in
rural areas. Some banks have identified a number of Muslim concentration 
areas as negative
geographical zones where bank credit and other facilities are not easily 
provided. Steps should be
introduced to specifically direct credit to Muslims, create awareness of various 
credit schemes
and bring transparency in reporting of information.

9. There is a clear and significant inverse association between the proportion 
of the Muslim
population and the availability of educational infrastructure in small villages. 
Muslim
concentration villages are not well served with pucca approach roads and local 
bus stops. The
concentration of Muslims in states lacking infrastructural facilities implies that 
a large proportion
of the community is without access to basic services. In both urban and rural 
areas, the
proportion of Muslim households living in pucca houses is lower than the total 
population.
Compared to the Muslim majority areas, the areas inhabiting fewer Muslims 
had better roads,
sewage and drainage and water supply facilities.

10. Substantially larger proportion of the Muslim households in urban areas are 
in the less than
Rs.500 expenditure bracket.

11. The presence of Muslims has been found to be only 3% in the IAS, 1.8% in 
the IFS and 4%
in the IPS. The share of Muslims in employment in various departments is 
abysmally low at all
levels. Muslim community has a representation of only 4.5% in Indian Railways 
while 98.7% of
them are positioned at lower levels. Representation of Muslims is very low in 
the Universities
and in Banks. In no state does the representation of Muslims in the 
government departments
match their population share. Their share in police constables is only 6%, in 
health 4.4%, in
transport 6.5%. There is need to ensure a significant presence of Muslims 
especially in those
departments that have mass contact on a day to day basis or are involved in 
sensitive tasks.
Targeted programmes are required to be put in place. The coverage of Muslims 
in ICDS
programme is poor in most states. For the Maulana Azad Education Foundation 
to be effective
the corpus fund needs to be increased to 1000 crores. Total allocation in the 
four years 2002 to
2006 for Madarsa Modernization Scheme is 106 crores. The information 
regarding the Scheme
has not adequately percolated down. Even if the share of Muslims in elected 
bodies is low they
and other under represented segments can be involved in the decision making 
process through
innovative mechanisms.

12. The Presidential Order of 1950 is inconsistent with Article 14, 15, 16 and 25 
of the
Constitution that guarantee equality of opportunity, freedom of conscience and 
protect the
citizens from discrimination by the State on grounds of religion, caste or creed.
Most of the variables indicate that Muslim-OBCs are significantly deprived in 
comparison to
Hindu-OBCs. The work participation rate (WPR) shows the presence of a sharp 
difference
between Hindu-OBCs (67%) and the Muslims. The share of Muslim-OBCs in 
government/ PSU
jobs is much lower than Hindu-OBCs. Out of every hundred workers about 
eleven are
Hindu-OBCs, only three are Muslim-Gen and one is a Muslim-OBC. The monthly 
Per Capita
Expenditure of Muslims is much lower than the national average. Benefits of 
entitlements meant
for the backward classes are yet to reach Muslim OBCs. The condition of 
Muslims in general is
also lower than the Hindu-OBCs who have the benefit of reservations.

13. There are about 5 lakh registered Wakfs with 6 lakh acre land and Rs 6,000 
crore book value.
But the gross income from all these properties is only 163 crores i.e. 2.7%. The 
management of
Wakf Boards is unsatisfactorily due to inadequate empowerment of the State Wakf Boards and
Centreal Wakf Council. Encroachment of Wakf properties by the State is a common practice.
The attitude of the State Governments and their agencies has resulted in large scale abrogation of
the cherished objectives of the Wakfs. Fresh institutional support is essential. A number of Wakf
properties have been acquired although compensation was not paid. High legislative,
administrative and judicial priority should be accorded to Wakf matters in order to improve the
management of about five lakh properties across India. The Chairman and Members of the State
Wakf Boards can be selected from a list of eminent persons in each state. The Government
should create a new cadre of officers with knowledge of Islamic law to deal with the specific
affairs of the Wakfs efficiently. A National Wakf Development Corporation and State
Corporations should be established. The lease period of Wakf properties may be increased up to
30 years where the property is used for education, health care and other purposes consistent with
the objects of the Wakf provided the lessee is a registered society or a registered trust doing
charity work. Wakf properties should be exempted from Rent Control Act and Land Acquisition
Act. Wakf Tribunal should be manned by full time presiding officers appointed exclusively for
Wakf purposes. The Public Premises Eviction Act should be applied to remove encroachments
from Wakf properties. Failure on the part of the state and statutory bodies entrusted with
safeguarding Wakf properties has caused disquiet in the Muslim community.
Recommendations

14. The Muslim community exhibits deficits and deprivation in practically all dimensions of
development. Mechanisms to ensure equity and equality of opportunity to bring about inclusion
should be such that diversity is achieved and at the same time the perception of discrimination is
eliminated. Creation of a National Data Bank (NDB) where all relevant data for various Socio
Religious Communities are maintained has been recommended along with an autonomous
Assessment and Monitoring Authority to evaluate the extent of development benefits which
accrue to different Socio Religious Communities through various programmes. An Equal
Opportunity Commission should be constituted to look into the grievances of the deprived
groups. A carefully conceived nomination procedure should be worked out to increase
inclusiveness in governance. The Committee has recommended elimination of the anomalies
with respect to reserved constituencies under the delimitation scheme. The idea of providing
certain incentives to a diversity index should be explored. Incentives can be related to this index
so as to ensure equal opportunities to all socio religious communities in the fields of education,
governance, private employment and housing. State functionaries should be sensitive to the need
to have diversity and the problems associated with social exclusion. A process of evaluating the
content of the school textbooks needs to be initiated and institutionalized. The UGC should
evolve a system where part of the allocation to colleges and universities is linked to the diversity
in the student population. To facilitate admissions to the most backward amongst all the socio
religious communities in the regular universities and autonomous colleges, alternate admission
criteria need to be evolved. Providing hostel facilities at reasonable costs for students from
minorities must be taken up on a priority basis. Teacher training should be compulsory ensuring
in its curriculum the components which introduce the importance of diversity and plurality. The
teachers should be sensitized towards the needs and aspirations of Muslims and other
marginalized communities. The states should run Urdu medium schools. Work out mechanisms
whereby Madarsas can be linked with a higher secondary school board so that students wanting
to shift to a regular mainstream education can do so after having passed from a Madarsa.
Recognition of the Madarsa degrees for eligibility in competitive examinations is desirable. The
Committee recommended promoting and enhancing access to Muslims in Priority Sector Bank
Advances. The real need is of policy initiatives that improve the participation and share of the
Minorities, particularly Muslims in the business of regular commercial banks. The community
should be represented on interview panels and Boards. The underprivileged should be helped to
utilize new opportunities in its high growth phase through skill development and education.
Provide financial and other support to initiatives built around occupations where Muslims are
concentrated and have growth potential.

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