Staff REPORTER
ITANAGAR, May 29: The Arunachal Frontier Tribal Front (AFTF) has demanded scrapping of the 80:20 ratio in job reservation in the state and served a 30-day ultimatum to the government for reviewing the policy.
Addressing a press conference here on Friday, AFTF chairman Tadak Nalo said the 80:20 quota was introduced by the state Govt in 1990 and continues to be followed in recruitment examinations conducted by the Arunachal Pradesh Public Service Commission (APPSC) and Arunachal Pradesh Staff Selection Board (APSSB), as well as in the promotion structure of Govt employees.
“Under the existing system, 80 per cent of the posts are reserved for Arunachal Pradesh Scheduled Tribe (APST) candidates while the remaining 20 per cent are kept unreserved,” Nalo stated. He alleged that the policy had not been reviewed on the basis of present capability or requirement and claimed that similar reservation policies do not exist in other Northeastern states.
According to Nalo, states such as Mizoram, Nagaland, Manipur, Sikkim and Assam have strict recruitment norms where only indigenous inhabitants or domicile holders are allowed to participate in recruitment examinations.
Citing examples, he said that in Mizoram, candidates appearing for recruitment examinations are required to possess permanent residential certificates (PRC), ST certificates and knowledge of the Mizo language. Similarly, he said candidates appearing for Manipur Public Service Commission examinations must possess PRC of Manipur and knowledge of Manipuri language or tribal dialects of the state.
Nalo maintained that the existence of the 80:20 reservation policy in Arunachal Pradesh was adversely affecting the socio-cultural, economic and political ecosystem of the frontier state in the long run.
The AFTF has demanded that the government make it mandatory for candidates appearing in APPSC and APSSB examinations to possess valid ST certificates and PRC. The organisation also urged the State Govt to re-examine the reservation policy and take necessary steps to protect the interests of indigenous people of Arunachal Pradesh.