India's reservation system is the world's oldest and most complex affirmative action program.

Countries & Cities · Published 3 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: Established during the British Raj, India's reservation system allocates quotas in education, employment, and politics for historically marginalized groups. While designed to foster social equity, it remains a subject of intense national debate, evolving through constitutional amendments and landmark Supreme Court rulings that continue to reshape its scope and implementation.

The roots of India's reservation system predate independence, with early initiatives emerging in the late 19th century. In 1902, the Maharaja of Kolhapur, Chatrapati Shahu, implemented a 50 percent reservation for educationally deprived communities. By 1921, the Justice Party government in the Madras Presidency passed the first communal government order, formalizing legislative quotas. These early efforts sought to dismantle systemic barriers, such as the practice of untouchability, which was later outlawed by the Constitution of India in 1950.

Following independence, the program expanded significantly. The 1992 Supreme Court ruling in the Indra Sawhney case established a 50 percent cap on reservations, though recent legal developments have challenged this limit. In 2019, the government introduced a 10 percent reservation for economically weaker sections of the general category, a move upheld by the Supreme Court in 2022. This decision effectively pushed total reservation in central institutions to 59.50 percent, signaling a shift toward economic-based affirmative action alongside traditional caste-based models.

The system's complexity is evident in its regional variations and evolving categories. States like Tamil Nadu maintain a 69 percent reservation, while northeastern states like Arunachal Pradesh reserve 80 percent of government jobs for Scheduled Tribes. Recent judicial interventions, such as the 2024 Supreme Court ruling permitting sub-quotas for Scheduled Castes and Tribes, highlight the ongoing efforts to refine the program. Furthermore, the 106th Constitutional Amendment in 2023 introduced a 33 percent reservation for women in the Lok Sabha and state assemblies, reflecting the program's continued adaptation to address contemporary social disparities.

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