ABSTRACT
This chapter provides an overview of the conceptual, historical, and policy dimensions of the reservations policy in Indian higher education. The rationale for reservations includes the fair distribution of access to high-quality institutions. While they are important long-run indicators of equality of access and representation, aggregate data need to be interpreted with care. Although positive interventions in favour of the 'weaker sections' take many forms, the most visible and consequential one has been the caste quota. Given that social justice initiatives in higher education have received sustained scholarly attention, it is not surprising that the justificatory frameworks involved are only just beginning to be re-examined. As some insightful scholars with long involvement in social justice issues have suggested, the emergence of agency can be best facilitated by a 'return to politics' in the discourse on reservations. Arguments for privatisation are often predicated on the assumption that the state is a better regulator than provider.
