ABSTRACT
The Indian economy witnessed some important shifts during the 1990s. The Central Government initiated several policy measures that liberalized the earlier licence-quota raj and opened the Indian economy to private players and the global capital. This policy change proved to be an important turning point for the country in many different ways. The Indian economy began to grow at a much faster rate. Under the new regime, the Indian state began to reduce its active involvement in the economy. Local and global private capital was allowed and encouraged to expand into areas of economic activity that were hitherto not open to it. The policy shift also influenced the employment structures of the Indian economy. Even though employment opportunities expanded in the private sector, jobs available in the state sector began to shrink. For the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes this meant lesser jobs under the quota system, the Indian policy of reservations.
