In what is said to be its last weekly meeting of the current term, the Maharashtra Cabinet mulled over a variety of matters and gave its nod to a record number of 50 decisions, many of which attempted to tap the voters belonging to diverse social strata that is part of the other backward classes and Muslims ahead of the Assembly elections. Thursdays could be the last meeting of the Shinde Cabinet unless the chief minister (CM) decides to convene the next before the election schedule is announced before or after Dussehra.

Change income cap

Since OBCs have been the BJP’s backbone in the state in terms of its electoral success, the government addressed a concern related to the cap on the household’s annual income that offers quota benefits to the non-creamy layer families. The incomes of working parents, who do not belong to the forward class category, have increased over the past many years taking their annual earnings beyond a cap of Rs 8 lakh to qualify them as creamy layer. OBCs get a quota in education, jobs, and politics. But the creamy layer excludes them from the quota benefits. The cabinet recommended to the Centre that the cap be increased to Rs 15 lakh per annum per household.