There has been much hullabaloo around of late on this issue. And thought I will add to this
confusion, without adding much to it :). Had a nice conversation with a colleague of mine
today and a few points came out quite nice and clear.
Let's not focus on the caste based politics at this point. Rather let's focus on a few points with examples that this reservation can or cannot do for our country.
My personal view is reservation is going to be beneficial for a larger mass of India in the longer run. A natural question that would appear in the minds of one reading this passage is how. The merit we are talking about dear friend, believe me does not arise out of nowhere. Mostly we see people excelling in fields where their ancestors have shown excellence, be it academia or business. The fact that Brahminical class, however minuscule they might be when it comes to headcount, is ruling the roost everywhere does not necessarily point to the fact that they are the most 'meritorious' lot. Let their sons plough the field and the excellence will show. Knowledge and therefore 'knowledge based merit' is an accrual process that gradually increases with time, over era...down the generations. Had it not been for our knowledge in English language for past two or three generations, we would not have been in a position to outperform China today in the services outsourcing business. The people we are talking about has been deprived of this 'knowledge' for a period well enough to justify any effort on our part to uplift their status.
The next question that's being talked about often is why not get to the root of the problem and reform primary education. *grin* Face it, we know that we won't bring in more competitors to ourselves by restricting it to the 'reform in primary education'. When a child at the age of 12 comes back from the firecracker making factory and knows that he is the only one who can fend for the entire family, look after his ailing mother and rear up his siblings, seldom does he think of flipping through the pages of that book, that the government run free school has provided him with. Look from their point of view and face it that all we are trying to do is keep the seats implicitly reserved to ourselves, who by natural choice, by thousand years of bureaucracy have kept the merit to themselves.
I personally happen to be a 'so-called' software engineer who sees himself and people around doing nothing the lesser privileged citizens would not have been able to perform with some additional grooming. End of the day money speaks and money is all that secures the well being of the future generation. Let all share the pie for there to be fair distribution.
The only important point that came up was the criticality of medical faculty and how would that degrade should we think about reservation. A few points to that
1) Accepted that the students toil harder and harder to get through the medical entrance examination. No disrespect intended. But, at the doorstep of that medical school these young eager minds are just at the beginning of the process of being shaped into a promising doctor of tomorrow. If the medical schools cannot shape them up, what use is five years of rigorous education. Why not get the medical practitioner's stamp right after the entrance examination itself ?! Time the schools lived upto their expectation and not just wait for creme-de-la-creme to be waiting at the gate.
2) Most of the medical students passing out of the schools, start private practice or go abroad, and quite justifiedly so. If we open the door to the elite schools to entire india, who knows, we might just be having more people going back to their native place, where people die of a minor influenza ? Point is we will just be having more people having the required knowledge to serve people.
All said and done, this will remain a silent personal viewpoint. If it made you think even for once, is all I was looking for.
Signing off...
