Social Benefits of Reservation: Mapping Social Mobility and the ‘Paying-back’ Tendency among the Middle Class

Abstract

India’s reservation policy targets a wide variety of groups on the periphery of Indian society. Reservations in job are intended to uplift and empower as well as provide the beneficiaries with opportunities for social and economic mobility. A closer look reveals that the policies of the state have not helped the larger Scheduled Caste (SC) and Scheduled Tribe (ST) masses to improve their lot, but on the contrary, they engendered a microscopic class among the community itself. In this context, the question is: Has middle class been ‘paying back’ to the needy in different forms? It is found that majority of the members of the middle class were keen to extend help and bring about desired social mobility amongst the members of their community.

Keywords

Dalits dalit middle class paying-back tendency social benefits of reservation group mobility

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