If a nation’s aspirations are judged by the doors it opens, then India’s education system has spent the past 77 years unlocking millions of them. From the launch of Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) in 2001–02, followed by RMSA in 2009 and RUSA in 2013, India has reimagined how opportunity reaches its last citizen. The country that once struggled to bring children to school is now a nation that speaks of digital classrooms, multidisciplinary universities, global benchmarks, and aspirational youth ready to compete with the world. And yet, at this moment of forward movement, a difficult question emerges, why are we expanding reservation when the data shows that India is more educated, more connected, and more capable than ever before?
This is not a denial of historical injustice, nor a dismissal of the struggles many communities still face. It is, instead, an emotional and academic appeal to re-examine a policy landscape shaped in another era.
The Distance Already Travelled:
When SSA was launched nationwide in 2001–02, India’s priority was simple: get every child into a classroom. Back then, dropout rates were high, access was uneven, and female participation was limited. The mission was urgent—and reservation, in many ways, acted as a bridge across historical divides. By 2009, RMSA expanded the bridge to secondary education. By 2013, RUSA strengthened higher education infrastructure. Over these decades, the country witnessed:
Dramatic rise in school enrollment.
Expansion of girls’ education.
Growth of universities and colleges in rural and semi-urban regions.
New financial, digital, and institutional support systems
The India of the early 2000s—scarred by centuries of exclusion—needed strong affirmative safeguards. But the India of 2025 is not the India of 2000.
The Compulsion to Rethink:
Reservation was designed as a temporary measure; the Constitution itself envisioned periodic review. But political comfort has turned a temporary remedy into a permanent crutch—used not to uplift the vulnerable, but often to nurture vote banks. Today, communities are no longer asking for perpetual reservation; they are asking for quality, dignity, and opportunity. It is painful and ironic that even after 78 years of independence and landmark educational reforms, political forces continues to push for expansion rather than rationalization of reservation. Where does genuine social justice lie—in broadening the net endlessly or in strengthening the ladders that help people climb out of disadvantage permanently?
Voices of Open Merit Candidates (The Emotional Core):
Policy debates often forget the human heart. There is a generation of students, laboring in modest rooms, waking before dawn, juggling tuition fees and family responsibilities, who rely solely on merit. For many, merit is their only currency. They do not ask to be privileged; they ask to be judged fairly. Consider the aspirant who scored near the top in a competitive exam, but missed a post because an expanding quota left too few open-merit seats. Consider the family that sold a small asset to finance coaching classes; their young adult now feels unheard by a system that promises equal opportunity but delivers diminishing unreserved avenues. These experiences are not anecdotes to dismiss; they are the emotional stakes of policy. A fair system must answer to both justice for the historically disadvantaged and respect for the earnest effort of the present generation.
NEP 2020: A Vision Misaligned With Old Approaches:
The National Education Policy 2020 is built upon merit, flexibility, equity, and excellence. It celebrates critical thinking, interdisciplinarity, innovation, and global competitiveness. NEP 2020 imagines a system that empowers every child—not by freezing them into categories forever, but by giving them skills to break barriers. Expanding reservation today stands in quiet contradiction to NEP’s spirit. NEP emphasizes:
Holistic development.
Competency-driven learning.
Equal access to technology.
Merit‑based progression.
Reducing rigid structures and outdated frameworks.
If India wants to prepare youth for the global stage, it must avoid policies that divide more than they uplift, and instead invest in policies that create equal foundations.
The Emotional Reality:
Behind every number lies a child, a dream, a family trying to rise. Those from marginalised communities deserve every support—education, scholarships, mentorship, financial aid, hostels, digital access, skill development, and more. But they also deserve a nation that believes they can stand tall on their own merit. True empowerment is not when a student enters a university because of a reserved seat; it is when they leave that university confident enough never to need one again. We must move from sympathy to solidarity, from political arithmetic to human dignity.
Conclusion: A Call for Courage:
India has walked too far, learned too much, and grown too strong to be trapped in the shadows of outdated frameworks. Reservation must not be abolished recklessly—but it must be re-examined honestly, scientifically, and periodically. It must reflect today’s realities, not yesterday’s fears. A developed nation is one where opportunities flow like light—not selectively or politically, but universally.
The world is watching India rise. Let us rise in a way that unites us, not divides us. Let us build a policy landscape worthy of the dreams of 1.4 billion people. That is the India our children deserve. That is the India we must create together.
The author is working in the department of education and can be mailed at darsaimahamid@gmail.com
