Telangana Becomes First State to Implement SC Sub-Quota
Telangana has become the first state in India to implement sub-categorisation within Scheduled Caste (SC) reservations, marking a significant shift in how affirmative action is administered. The policy came into effect on April 14, 2025, coinciding with the birth anniversary of Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, and aims to ensure that the most disadvantaged castes among the SCs receive a proportionate share of the benefits.
The reform was brought into effect through the Scheduled Castes (Rationalisation of Reservations) Act, 2025. Under this policy, the 15% reservation for SCs in the state is now split into three distinct groups based on socio-economic backwardness:
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Group I (1% quota): 15 sub-castes identified as the most backward and least represented.
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Group II (9% quota): 18 sub-castes deemed moderately backward and underrepresented.
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Group III (5% quota): 26 sub-castes considered relatively better-off and dominant in availing reservation benefits.
This sub-division is grounded in empirical data from the 2011 Census and the findings of the Justice Shamim Akhtar Commission, which evaluated educational attainment, employment trends, and representation in public services to determine disparities within the SC community.
The Telangana Assembly had passed the bill on March 18, 2025, following a landmark Supreme Court ruling in August 2024 that upheld the constitutional validity of sub-categorisation within Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes for the purpose of equitable reservation.
The state government has since issued four separate Government Orders to operationalize the new quota structure in education and employment. By tailoring reservation benefits to specific caste groups based on their actual socio-economic status, the policy seeks to correct long-standing imbalances where dominant sub-castes disproportionately benefited from affirmative action.
This bold move is expected to set a precedent for other states, especially those with large and diverse SC populations, to reassess how caste-based reservations are distributed in pursuit of true social justice.
