Which of the following is correct for the OBC population in India?
A. It is a diverse group with regional variations.
B. They are mostly from untouchable castes.
C. Till 1990, two different commissions were set up for OBC welfare.
D. Southern states in India started mobilization of OBC long before the northern states.
Choose the correct answer from the options given below:
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → A, C and D only
A. It is a diverse group with regional variations. Correct. The OBCs are a much more diverse group than the Dalits or adivasis; they include members of other religions too.
B. They are mostly from untouchable castes. Incorrect. The OBCs are neither the forward castes nor the Dalits at the lower end; the untouchable castes are the Dalits.
C. Till 1990, two different commissions were set up for OBC welfare. Correct. The First Backward Classes Commission (Kaka Kalelkar) reported in 1953, and the Second (B.P. Mandal) was set up in the late 1970s.
D. Southern states in India started mobilization of OBC long before the northern states. Correct. Backward caste agitation in the south began in the early twentieth century, and its policies for the OBCs came long before those of most northern states.
NCERT (2025-26): “The Other Backward Classes … They are neither part of the ‘forward’ castes at the upper end of the status spectrum, nor of the Dalits at the lower end. But since caste has entered all the major Indian religions and is not confined to Hinduism alone, there are also members of other religions who belong to the backward castes and share the same traditional occupational identification and similar or worse socio-economic status. For these reasons, the OBCs are a much more diverse group than the Dalits or adivasis. The first government of independent India under Jawaharlal Nehru appointed a commission to look into measures for the welfare of the OBCs. The First Backward Classes Commission headed by Kaka Kalelkar submitted its report in 1953. But the political climate at the time led to the report being sidelined. From the midfifties, the OBC issue became a regional affair pursued at the state rather than the central level. The southern states had a long history of backward caste political agitation that had started in the early twentieth century. Because of these powerful social movements, policies to address the problems of the OBCs were in place long before they were discussed in most northern states.…” |