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The Government of India appointed the Second Backward Classes Commission (Mandal Commission) in:
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Answer: Option B — 1979
Detailed Solution
The Second Backward Classes Commission, popularly called the Mandal Commission, was appointed on 1 January 1979 by the Janata Party government led by Prime Minister Morarji Desai.
About the Mandal Commission:
It was appointed under Article 340 of the Constitution, which allows the President to appoint a commission to investigate the conditions of socially and educationally backward classes.
It was chaired by Bindeshwari Prasad Mandal (B. P. Mandal), a former Chief Minister of Bihar.
It submitted its report in December 1980.
Its findings:
- It identified 3,743 castes as "Other Backward Classes" (OBCs).
- It estimated that OBCs formed about 52 per cent of India's population.
- It used 11 indicators (social, educational and economic) to identify backwardness.
- It recommended 27 per cent reservation for OBCs in central government jobs and educational institutions, so that total reservation (with SC and ST quotas of 22.5 per cent) would remain below 50 per cent.
Implementation:
The report was not acted upon for about ten years.
In August 1990, Prime Minister V. P. Singh announced the implementation of 27 per cent reservation for OBCs in central government jobs. This led to widespread protests.
In the "Indra Sawhney case" (1992), also called the Mandal case, the Supreme Court upheld the 27 per cent OBC reservation but:
Excluded the "creamy layer" (the better-off among OBCs).
Fixed a ceiling of 50 per cent on total reservations (except in extraordinary situations).
Disallowed reservation in promotions (later changed by a constitutional amendment for SCs and STs).
The OBC reservation in central government jobs came into effect in 1993.
In 2006, 27 per cent OBC reservation was extended to central higher educational institutions (93rd Amendment, 2005).
Related bodies:
- National Commission for Backward Classes (NCBC): set up in 1993 as a statutory body; given constitutional status under Article 338B by the 102nd Amendment Act, 2018.
- The 105th Amendment Act (2021) restored the power of states to identify OBCs.
- The "Rohini Commission" (2017) examined sub-categorisation of OBCs.
Why not the other options?
- ✗1953 is the year the First Backward Classes Commission was appointed.
- ✗1990 is the year the Mandal recommendations were implemented.
- ✗1993 is the year the NCBC was set up.
Quick tip
Remember: Mandal Commission = Second Backward Classes Commission, 1 January 1979 (Morarji Desai government; B. P. Mandal; 27 per cent OBC quota; report 1980; implemented 1990 by V. P. Singh); Indra Sawhney case = 1992; NCBC constitutional = 2018.
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Constitutional & Statutory Bodies — Preparation
This question tests your understanding of Constitutional & Statutory Bodies, a key topic in the General Knowledge section. The detailed solution above uses a step-by-step approach to show the reasoning, and where available, a shortcut that helps you solve similar questions in under 90 seconds during the actual exam.
This topic covers bodies set up under the Constitution, such as the Election Commission, UPSC, Finance Commission, Comptroller and Auditor General and the national commissions for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, and statutory or executive bodies such as NITI Aayog, the NHRC, the CVC, the CBI and Lokpal. Questions often ask whether a body is constitutional or not, which article creates it, who appoints its head and for how long. For example, the CAG is appointed under Article 148, the Finance Commission under Article 280, and NITI Aayog replaced the Planning Commission in 2015 by an executive resolution. Practise the constitutional and statutory bodies questions below, written in the style of the general awareness sections of exams such as SSC, banking, railways, CUET GAT, MAH CET and CLAT. Each question comes with a detailed explanation that adds related facts, so every question helps you revise more than one point.