Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha issued the order to redraw the caste list
Jammu and Kashmir government has redrawn the social caste list in the Union Territory by including 15 new groups in the Scheduled Caste category who will now have the benefits of reservations in jobs and education.
Manoj Sinha, the Lieutenant Governor of Jammu and Kashmir, issued an order to redraw the social caste list under the Jammu and Kashmir Reservation Act, 2004.
Among those included in the list are refugees from West Pakistan who had settled in Jammu, Gorkhas and members from the Jat community.
The decision follows a recent announcement by Union Home Minister Amit Shah to grant Scheduled Tribe status to the Pahari-speaking people in Jammu and Kashmir.
In today's circular, the Jammu and Kashmir administration also substituted the term "Pahari-speaking people" with "Pahari ethnic people" to avoid legal problems.