Kerala govt releases JB Koshy panel report on backward Christians

T'puram: The state govt has released the Justice JB Koshy Commission report which recommends proportional representation of socially and economically backward Christians in education and jobs. The 357-page report also wants the govt to offer minority benefits to Christians, especially those who converted from scheduled castes (SC) and scheduled tribes (ST). The commission justifies its recommendation by saying that the plight of these sections of Christians is worse than that of the SCs before conversion. They should be eligible for all benefits due to SC/ST.
It also says that the govt should offer the reservation quota of SC/ST candidates, that falls vacant when there are no candidates, to the socially and economically backward Christians instead of merging the quota into the general category. The commission wants the govt to establish a welfare fund for Sunday schoolteachers on the lines of the one for madrassa teachers. The commission was appointed by the state govt to study various issues faced by Christian communities. The state cabinet recently approved the report. The release of the report was announced by chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan at a meeting of representatives from various Christian churches in Thiruvananthapuram. Some of the recommendations of the commission were already implemented. "The remaining recommendations require changes to central and state policies, laws and regulations, or need further in-depth examination. The govt is working to include all groups and resolve their issues. The CM suggested that different groups submit their problems in writing," said a statement. During the discussion, there was a call to appoint an oversight committee to discuss the published information and future implementations with the govt. The CM assured that this would be considered. He also stated that the govt would study the opinions and written information from the discussion about the commission report before convening another meeting. Meanwhile, Cardinal Cleemis, Major Archbishop-Catholicos of the Syro-Malankara Church, expressed approval of the govt's action to release the Koshy commission report. Various Church leaders and representatives indicated that they would provide feedback after reviewing the information on the website.