Guidelines have also been issued to improve the representation of minorities in the government, PSEs and banks.
However, the panel was silent on the issue of reservations for Muslims.
Announcing the measures, the government presented an action taken report in Parliament on the steps it proposed to take to implement the Sachar Committee's suggestions. The government, however, remained silent on the Sachar Committee's recommendation favouring reservation for the most backward in the 150-million strong community.
Many leaders argued that as the elections got over, Muslims and their problems were forgotten. Their anti-BJP stance is beneficial only for the party opposing the BJP and not to Muslims, they pointed out
The committee found that Muslims had not been attempting for the civil services examinations in numbers proportionate to their share in the population.
What's most interesting about the report is the manner in which it seeks to blow up all the perceived inequities -- even if you haven't read the report, the stories leaked to the media give a clear enough picture.
Recognising that madrassas have played an important role in providing religious education, the committee said linking madrassas with a higher secondary school board would enable students to shift to mainstream education.
While the main opposition party, which lost power in the 2004 Lok Sabha elections after a six-year stint in office, remained unclear on the leadership issue, it remained upbeat for having found an 'emotive issue.'
Amid talk of mid-term polls, Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party appear to have gone into election mode and have launched hectic efforts to get their acts together.
Government told the Rajya Sabha on Monday there was no proposal to sell the Dabhol power plant.
He said these opinions could be incorporated in the ATR.
With the Sachar Committee findings on the status of Muslims not reflecting favourably on its rule, the Congress on Thursday decried attempts to blame it for the plight of the community.
70-plus years after Independence, 'Hindu India, metamorphosised as 'Hindutva India', is proving the British right -- and for all the wrong reasons. Mohan Bhagwat should have answers for the why of it, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
Stating that providing reservation was no solution to development concerns of Muslims, Najma Heptulla, who took charge as Minister for Minority Affairs, said the new government will ensure progress of all communities, with special stress on education facilities for minorities.
'... The girl's parents would probably react in the same manner as the parents of the Hindu girl who marries a Muslim boy.' Minority Affairs Najma Heptulla, in an exclusive interview.
Paying back Narendra Modi in kind for his remarks of Himalayan arrogance, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar today hit back at him saying, "Arrogance is dripping from every inch of his body."
'It is inconceivable that there are no gays working in Indian corporations but obviously, the subject remains taboo enough in the workplace for those of alternate sexual orientation to feel safer remaining in the closet,' notes Kanika Datta.
Congress chief Sonia Gandhi on Sunday launched a scathing attack on Narendra Modi, saying those who don't believe in secular values cannot grasp the spirit of patriotism, and will lead the country to destruction if they get power.
Everyone, it seems, has a question to ask the BJP's prime ministerial candidate these days. Rediff.com's Sheela Bhatt asked some well-known Indians what they would like to ask Narendra Modi, to gauge what emotions he evokes in them.
'At this moment, the Trinamool has an edge.'
Batting for minority rights, Congress President Sonia Gandhi on Wednesday cautioned people against forces weakening the country's secular ethos and said communal harmony should not be disturbed over small, local incidents.
'Indian secularism doesn't deserve a tombstone. It needs a new shrine,' argues Shekhar Gupta.
'There are 17 million Hindus in Bangladesh and we, in the north east, see this Citizenship (Amendment) Bill as a route for them to enter India on the plea that they are facing persecution in Bangladesh.'
On the lines of the Sachar Committee for Muslims, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has set up a panel to assess the status of Scheduled Tribes, to ensure their progress in socio-economic, health and education fields.
The Bombay High Court on Friday stayed implementation of the controversial decision of the erstwhile Congress-Nationalist Congress Party government in Maharashtra to provide reservation to Marathas in government jobs and educational institutions announced ahead of the state assembly election.
A fundraiser for the Aligarh Muslim University hosted in California saw keynote speakers talk about the plight of Indian Muslims and a way out.
A delegation of Muslim leaders led by Shahi Imam of Jama Masjid Syed Ahmed Bukhari met Congress President Sonia Gandhi in New Delhi during which she asked them to ensure that secular votes did not split in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.
Permissive communalism, as represented by the Sachar Committee report, cannot become the basis to counter the threat of majoritarianism, says D L Sheth.
Making no effort to conceal his prime ministerial ambitions, Samajwadi Party supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav on Saturday said the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections were "a matter of honour" for him.
He said that exclusion and discrimination including failure to provide security has to be corrected by the state.
With an eye on assembly elections after severe drubbing in Lok Sabha polls, the Congress-Nationalist Congress Party government on Wednesday approved 16 per cent reservation for Marathas and five per cent for Muslims in government jobs and education institutions.
'Muslims are depressed and disillusioned.' 'The safety valve is that we still have a multicultural mosaic in West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Kerala.'
I am not here to play negative politics in the name of Muslims, says the leader of yet another electoral front in Bihar.
'When it comes to national politics, the Modi-Shah BJP has successfully redefined secularism.' 'If a party like the Congress has to have a future, it has to move closer to the secular centre from the far Left where its Left infatuation during the UPA years dragged it,' argues Shekhar Gupta.
The new government has to make conscious efforts to rebuild social equality and bring the people together.
'Electricity, better roads and uninterrupted water supply are problems for everyone in India, not Muslims alone.' 'Regional parties are solving these problems much better. And for that reason, Muslims favour regional parties.'
'Nobody knows what they teach in madrasas.' 'If we do not adapt to the ways of the modern world, how will we progress as a community?' 'How will these children compete in the modern world?'
'Bangladeshi Muslims want to increase their population in India.' 'They have made colonies in India.' 'Rohingyas are doing the same.' 'This has to stop.'
'Why isn't the BJP ready to give reservations to Muslims despite the high court telling it to do so?' 'A K Antony said the Congress lost the 2014 election because of Muslim appeasement. Antony should have gone to the jails of Maharashtra and found out how many Muslims were arrested during Congress rule. I don't know what kind of appeasement this is.' 'We reposed faith in so-called great secular leaders and they deceived us.'
With its refusal to accept the modern social values, the Indian Muslim community is going down the slope of progress, says Najid Hussain.
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