The Jharkhand State Backward Class Commission on Wednesday conducted a district-level review in Hazaribagh as part of the ongoing triple test process ahead of municipal elections. The commission’s team, led by chairman Janki Prasad Yadav, inspected select urban wards and held meetings with officials to assess the socio-economic, educational, and political status of the Other Backward Classes (OBCs) in the district.
The visiting delegation included commission members Nandkishore Mehta, Laxman Yadav, Naresh Verma, and Under Secretary Md. Mazhar Hussain, along with other staff. The team visited Dipugadha and Matwari wards under the local urban body, where physical verification exercises were carried out. A review meeting was also convened at the Circuit House with district officials to examine the implementation status of welfare measures for backward communities.
Key areas of review included the outcome of door-to-door socio-economic surveys, implementation of reservation in outsourced appointments, pending applications for caste and residential certificates, availability of ex gratia grants in cases of natural disasters, disposal of Non-Creamy Layer (NCL) applications, OBC admissions under the Right to Education Act, beneficiary data under the Chief Minister Employment Generation Scheme, and participation of OBCs in schemes run by the fisheries department. Departmental officials were directed to ensure the timely processing of pending cases and take corrective steps where necessary.
Chairman Janki Prasad Yadav told reporters that the triple test process was nearing completion and a final report would be submitted to the State Election Commission shortly. He said five wards had already undergone physical verification and BLO lists were under scrutiny for caste-wise data validation. He added that the Hemant Soren government was committed to ensuring OBC representation in local bodies and that elections are likely to be held by October or November.
The commission is currently conducting similar exercises in 15 districts, involving field visits and high-level discussions. Yadav noted that delays in urban local body elections have slowed down development work and that the government is keen to expedite the poll process.