Horizontal Reservation

Subject: Polity

Context:

The cabinet of Tamil Nadu state has approved 10 per cent horizontal reservation in medical admissions to government school students who clear the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET). An Ordinance is likely to be promulgated within a few days to give effect to this from the current academic year.

Concept:

• The reservations in favour of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Other Backward Classes under Article 16(4) may be called vertical reservations. The total percentage of Reservation for the above three categories should not exceed 50% at any point of time
• The reservation in favour of Ex-servicemen, Person with Disability, Sportsmen, Minorities etc may be called Horizontal reservation.
• Horizontal reservations cut across the vertical reservations is called interlocking reservations.
• The percentage of reservation allotted to Horizontal reservation categories should be adjusted against percentage of SC/ST/ OBC and General categories in vertical reservation.