General Terms And Conditions - Accommodation Reservations: Fill & Download for Free

Short Answer:The Caste based reservation system is a inconclusive debate with no clear cut lines. There is little evidence that it has made a difference to the poor over the forty years of practicing it, but the system cannot be scrapped or changed easily as the social disadvantages remain a contentious issue. There are no authoritative answers to this one.Long Answer:The Indian Caste based reservation system and the arguments related to it have been the subject of electoral promises, books, national debates, forum discussions and bar fights. Since the past (or finding whos to blame) is the primary focus, these exercises hardly result in anything productive. So, instead of talking about the religious past of the caste system, what could have been done by our past leaders, taking a personal or emotional view of this system, etc let us take an objective look at:What the Reservation system hopes to achieveEquality of opportunity & autonomy/social safety net Vs Equality of outcome debateWhat percentage of poor people (urban vs rural) are present in India and the number of disadvantaged people in this categoryNumber of disadvantaged people who have access to education/jobsHow many people benefit from reservation every yearDistribution of the reservation system - what percent of disadvantaged actually benefit from this system.How it has affected the demographics/income and society over the last few decadesHow poverty rates have changed over the yearsHas reservation changed anything in terms of caste distribution of the poorHas reservation system improved quality & educational performanceHow is the reservation system performingThe futureA brief idea can be formed from the Wikipedia article on this, I suggest you skim through it before continuing:Reservation in IndiaThis is a condensed statistical analysis in the absence of comprehensive literature and targeted at a very few people - so be warned that it is long and those not interested in Indian policies or hate long answers should bail at this point. Most explanations are using charts instead of statements. Emphasis is on education first and job sector second. The problems of reservation and the present solutions are surprising to say the least.Reservation system and its history:The idea of caste based reservation system was envisioned by William Hunter and Jyotirao Phule in various forms in 1882 and implemented by Chatrapati Sahuji in 1901. The term was changed to "Depressed Class" in 1932 by Ambedkar and later to "Scheduled Caste/Tribes" during the framing of the constitution in 1950. The idea was that a vast majority of the poor were from a very small caste group and they needed a social net so that they can be accommodated into society as full fledged members. It is important to note that this part of the reservation was for electoral rights first (to guarantee political representation - Poona Act ‘35) and a education/job rights issue second. Also note that education was made free in these early attempts so that poverty does not hinder their education by these early efforts. If not for Dr.Ambedkar's efforts, even this would not have come through during Independence. Ambedkar remains an icon for minority causes even today and is revered because of this. Enough of history. Fast forward to today.Objectives of Reservation:Uplift lower strata of societyEnsure proper political representation of minority groupsEnsure that minorities are not discriminated in job selections and promotionThe caste based reservation system is built around these three objectives.Equality of Opportunity & autonomy/social safety net Vs Equality of Outcome:In an Indian caste context, what this ideally means in theory is:Equality of opportunity : If a member of lower strata applies to a job and has the right qualifications and is a better performer compared to peers, he should get the job. Ie, their caste/economic status should not decide which jobs they apply/get selected to.Equality of autonomy : If a member of lower strata wants to become a rocket scientist, and has the intelligence and is willing to work towards this goal, there should not be any barriers to pursuing this goal. Ie, they should not be at a disadvantage when choosing their course of life because they were born poor/belong to a particular caste.Social safety net : When certain members of society did not have these privileges earlier and the government wants to help them, certain non contributory (free) measures are taken to help them. Ie, members of a disadvantaged group are given free financial incentives so that they are not trapped in the present position/do not fall into a life of crime and poverty. In short, a mid life boost to success.Since the disadvantaged groups of India have been discriminated against for centuries, and are still not protected despite the numerous laws(40% of crimes are committed against this 22% of the population), before equality of opportunity and autonomy, a social safety net is needed - ie a boost or ladder is required so that the more advanced forms of equality can be introduced and society can be balanced.Contrary to popular opinion, a social safety net is the most effective way to raise the standards of disadvantaged groups - this has been proven using data from various countries. It is fair discrimination. The key point here in the practice of this is - there are no people from disadvantaged groups in the upper echelons of society, and as long as they do not have a percentage equal to their share in the population in these elite groups - administrative, education, political etc, these measures are necessary as they do not have the economic or educational resources to get to the top. In short -"Without access to education, the poor will always be poor"These things sound great in theory. Opponents of caste based reservation(myself included) have a valid opposing idea, which practically means:Equality of outcome : By helping people even though they are not have equal credentials/qualifications (reservation gives leeway of 10 - 40% reduction in various parameters in India) it is not equality of opportunity but an unfair playing field - there is no incentive for better performers and it becomes reverse discrimination.The catch with a social net is that it has to be done short term and reduced over a period of time so that the other forms - opportunity and autonomy can take root and grow. This never happened in India. Besides, reservation is not justified in niche fields and higher education when a graduation is already a requirement - ie how many time should a person get these life boosts when it they are already have the same qualification and reached a level playing field? At this point, a loan to fund education makes more sense than a free pass irrespective of performance. In short -"Reservation system based on a social net contradicts itself"“Government should not play Robin Hood”I will leave applying these concepts to job/education sectors to the readers imagination, as it varies by sector and locality. Done with philosophy of reservation. On to real world data.Demographics related to Reservation:The statistics for India related to reservation are:Population of India, split up by caste:Reservation percentage, split by caste:Population Split by Religion (religious minorities are given quota in certain states):Distribution of SC population, by state:Highest incidence is in Punjab - 28.9%.Distribution of ST population, by state:The highest incidence is in Lakshadweep islands - 94.5%.Percentages are almost the same when it comes to reserved percentage vs population statistics.Number of people with educational qualifications, by social strata:Graduates are 3.6% of the general population (including SC and ST), whereas it is 1.4% and 0.9% in SC and ST categories.We are getting more kids admitted into schools (85% is really good) , but only 60% make it to 5th grade and 52% to high school. Only 7% of those admitted into the school system finally pass. Final graduation rates from colleges are close to 3.6%, as mentioned in the previous chart. This is not because the kids are not able to perform academically, but because of simple reasons like no teachers, financial dependency, etc. The relative percentage of kids making it to secondary school and college has not improved over the past 30 years.Ie, admissions into primary education is increasing, but drop out rates and final graduate output is almost the same. The number of graduates has increased, but not as a relative percentage - it merely represents the increase in population.Number of people who benefit from reservation every year:Education : India has about 436 universities and 25938 colleges with about 2-3 million graduates(if non technical diploma, etc are included) a year as of 2010. Educational institutions are required to surrender 50% of their seats to the government and very few minority run institutions are exempt from this. From that, 49% of the graduates benefit from reservation, so about 25% or 0.75 million people are direct beneficiaries of reservation in education. This percentage however varies between states and type of study (medical vs engineering vs arts vs law etc) and type of institution (deemed, private, minority run or trust run, government run colleges have 49.5% of their seats under the quota).Jobs :The GoI (state,central,panchayats,etc in the same order of number of employees) employs 17.8 million people or 3.6% of the total workforce of India (487 million workers) and 8% of them retire annually (because a vast majority of them were hired during the ‘82-’93), so that is 1.4 million vacancies. Because of this, 0.7 million people get jobs under reservation quota annually. There is no data related to economic standing of students, job seekers and their future income, but a fair argument can be made by comparing wealth distribution over the past 40 years.Distribution of Wealth and poverty rate:Poor, in an Indian context implies absolute poverty - can't buy the next meal poor or the person is unable to make Rs.20 (36 cents) a day. By international standards, it is $1.25 a day and 32% of Indian population is poor by that definition.Over the past 40 years, the reservation system has hardly changed anything in terms of wealth distribution (one of its objectives) - the upper 20% of the society controls 40% of the wealth, while the lower 20% is left with 7%.This is the distribution of poor people by caste, accounting for split between rural and urban population and normalising:It is to be noted that upper castes account for 36% of poor people and backward classes account for 16%. This 36% of poor people do not benefit from any of these “Welfare Schemes” when it is based on caste.The official numbers are always disputed by other agencies which say that poverty is reducing by 8-12% annually like clockwork and Indian government is cooking the numbers related to poverty. This deserves a mention here - according to them,(Economist)(Center for global development)Performance of the Reservation system when compared to its stated objectives:Though “lower strata” term is relative, the reservation system has not changed anything drastically when comparison of poverty rates and income of the bottom 20% of society is relatively the same compared over the last 40 years. This is more evident in rural areas. There are a significant portion of upper caste (6% of national population) who are poor and do not benefit from reservation. Cost of education has increased 12.5X over the previous decade - even the cheapest institutions have five percent inflation a year. Overall, the Caste based reservation system has achieved very little for the rural poor and has mostly fallen flat on its face in most of the metrics. It has failed because (unfair debate left out, as what's fair to me may not be fair to someone else) :It has not improved dropout ratesIt has not improved income share of poor peopleIt has not performed in terms of quality of education (India ranks 72nd in the world by PISA scale - pls comment if you want more details)It is not inclusive of all the poor sections of society (poor upper castes are left out)It is based on fixed percentages creating selection bubbles ie, there is no incentive to perform for those with reservation and there is no motivation for those without reservation as competition is higherThere is no data to support reservation based on caste has met any of its objectives after 4 decades of practicing itFuture:The caste based reservation system is a part of the Indian Constitution and unlikely to change. The window of opportunity to make effective long lasting changes to any Indian system is 10-15 years, and the political landscape is too busy on other things rather than trying to wrap their wits around this. It has affected who we are as a society and it will continue to affect future generations to come. The changes to this system can only be made by a bold government prepared to take action with a long term vision and goals, and that is not going to happen anytime soon.“There is no accountability in Indian politics”My take on this:Reservation of any kind will not work 100% efficiently under the current scenario. I am all for competing with a peer group which is fiercely competitive (I guess most Quorans would agree as most of us would have done just that) and leaving a portion of opportunities for poor people without resources, but in the current conditions it is unfair to people competing in general quota and poor people - the data proves it. While reservation is necessary for social good, I believe that in its current form it is not helping the majority of the targeted audience and unfair to the others. Without bringing poor kids who are out on the streets into a educational setting and retaining them, reservation hardly justifies the negatives it has. It is archaic and should be dispensed with in favor of a income based reservation system, where quota percentages are determined based on poverty levels, say every 5 years. Long term efforts (spread over 20-30 years or a generation to take root) should be to phase out reservation entirely in certain segments like higher education as equality of opportunity is provided from primary education onwards. Same can be argued for the job sector.Fine. After writing the income based reservation part, I got thinking that this measure deserves to be scrutinised as well. Is it truly a good way to go about welfare schemes? So I proceeded with some calculations to see if this argument has any reasoning behind it. Implementing a income based reservation system is tougher than most people think:Current public (read popular) demand:Income based reservation, below poverty line with 49.5% quota:If a reservation by income scheme is implemented retaining the 50.5:49.5 ratio of open vs reserved quota, giving 49.5% for poor people below the poverty line, then all castes are represented across the board:(this is just to contrast caste split between the existing and proposed system - ST category is actually under represented in the existing system)This system would ensure that people who deserve the social net benefit from it while relatively rich people compete among themselves as they have access to facilities etc. Seems fair to everyone right? poor people get their quota irrespective of caste. Smiles all around.But there is a practical problem why this cannot be implemented - only 3% of poor people make it to the stage where they can avail reservation - meaning even with 100% enrollment rate in primary school, 47% of the 49.5% poor do not make it to high school. There are no poor people below poverty line reaching high school to give away reserved seats to (30% of engineering seats reserved for SC/ST students lapse in certain states already, without this system). So, this scheme cannot be implemented without 47% of seats lapsing to general students anyway.Alternate Demand:Income Based reservation, with relative income as a parameter between students:Implementing this system is dumb too. For instance, what really is the handicap that a student with parents of income say Rs.400K a year have compared to a student with parents having income of a 5 million rupees? Maybe in ‘70s, the rich parents hired a super cool tutor, but in a digital world, the advantages are close to none - a broadband connection makes these students even on access to resources and study materials as textbooks, tutorials etc are available for free. This system, if implemented, would be a farce on so many levels.To conclude, we are back to where we were 60 years ago - there is a very poor, highly discriminated section of society that needs help and we have no well defined educational policy in practice on a national level that helps them.So, what’s the final solution?I do not have a clear answer to this nor the expertise, but my take would be:education reform spread over at least 2 decades is necessary, as there is no silver bullet to this problem. The only way to help them is to improve the education system so that more students are retained, and provide students with access to internet so that there is equality in access to information.Education:A income based reservation system with reduced quota (30% among students below poverty line) along with increased retention of students in terms of access to education should be the priority short term. Long term, mainstream primary education sector should be focussed on socialistic public education (public schools mostly suck today), compulsory and partially free (retaining mix of private and public schools with elements of Germany(Gymnasium system), China and UK education systems in the same order) and higher studies should be capitalistic (elements from USA, China and UK education systems in the same order). Private schools for the gifted and differently abled should be allowed - with regulations. India can take a lot of inspiration from China in this - these problems were faced by China 3 decades ago. China opened up its doors to foreign universities and collaborations, which we have not done yet. Chinese schools are ranked as the best right from primary education in terms of science, math and reading skills. Instead of trying to write history books with an agenda, both state and central governments should get started on these short term and long term changes on a war footing.Jobs:While quota in job selection can be justified to a certain extent, promotions should be left out of it. Quota in promotions is a rude joke when so many quantified evaluation models are available to ensure fair assessments during appraisals.Let us hope that future measures are taken in such a way that benefits really trickle down to those who need it instead of playing the caste card in every election. Reservation debate has implications in multiple fields ranging from social justice and economics to future standards of living. While this short answer is by no means complete in scope, it should provide pointers to form an informed opinion on this controversial policy of our country.Trivia:Constitution of India guarantees free education for every child till the age of 14. This was the only directive that Dr. Ambedkar set a timeline to - the deadline for implementing this was Jan 26, 1960. Today, the average family spends 20% of its income on primary education. Was this part of the constitution a forgotten promise?Disclaimer:I do not accept responsibility for errors in the calculations as this is casual run done in a single sitting from data which I already have, not a real study (every source and result is audited by a neutral party in such case) which normally would take a very long time. Recheck numbers yourself before using it any study or decision making.Census data inaccuracies:http://censusindia.gov.in/data_products/library/post_enumeration_link/eci6_page2.htmlData source for my calculations:Demographics:‘01 - Census Data of India - http://www.censusindia.gov.in (2010 audit has not completed yet)Poverty and timeline statistics:‘60 - ‘11 World Bank datahttp://data.worldbank.org/country/indiaCaste split:Sachar Committee report for proportion of Upper Caste poorhttp://www.minorityaffairs.gov.in/sacharEducational spending:Personal experience. I do not have data for this on a national level as fees in private schools is unregulated.Alternate sources for poverty:Economist -http://www.economist.com/node/14979330?story_id=14979330Center for global development-http://www.cgdev.org/content/publications/detail/1424922/Update:Sundaravathanan EkambaramYou are welcome to review my numbers, and refute them from another source if necessary. They are prepared from census and World Bank data, and quoted for their respective categories, without mingling data from one source with the other. The charts are not goggled, they are from GoI sourced from the above links, and prepared by me. The spreadsheet is below, please do go through it. And the question does ask for my view. Talk numbers. I have said that reservation so far has not reached those who deserve it, and that is why we need a income based reservation. I have also said that many poor Upper castes are left for dead. Is the efficiency you mentioned really worth the 25% of poor people? I disagree.Reservation_IndiaAfter you go through the numbers, please let me know how a balanced solution can be arrived at, I am open to better alternatives.

Simple state of Understanding (MOU) — An Act — (in general)PrefixRBI isn’t responsible for the lost of currency — day issue…SuffixRBI doesn't accommodate the currency for their beloved — nor believe so,…DerivedI promise to pay the bearer —Bearer in Cambridge English — a person whose job is to carry something, or a person who brings a messageForeign Exchange Rates & Protection against their Adverse Movement.Exchange RatesForward Contracts(e) foreign currency loans/bonds will be eligible for hedge only after final approval is accorded by the Reserve Bank where such approval is necessary or loan registration number is given by the Reserve Bank,(j) a person resident in India may enter into a forward contract with an authorised dealer in India to hedge an exposure to exchange risk in respect of transaction denominated in foreign currency but settled in Indian rupees, subject to the terms and conditions prescribed by the Reserve Bank of India.Borrowing & Lending in Foreign Exchange — the contract doesn't involve rupees — the Reserve Bank has accorded final approval for borrowing in foreign currency — A Person resident in India, who owes a foreign exchange or rupee liability, may enter into a contract for foreign currency rupee swap with an authorised dealer in India to hedge long-term exposure. Such contract if cancelled shall not be rebooked or reentered, by whatever name called.Freight Hedge(i) Reserve Bank may, on an application made in accordance with such procedure as may be directed by Reserve Bank, permit a person resident, subject to such terms & conditions as may be considered necessary, to enter into a freight derivative contract in an exchange or a market outside India to hedge the freight risk such person is exposed to.(ii) An authorised dealer in India specially authorised by the Reserve Bank may permit the oil refining company or a shipping company, resident in India, to enter into freight derivative contracts in an exchange or market outside India, to hedge the freight risk which the company is exposed to, subject to such terms and conditions as may be stipulated by the Reserve Bank from time to time: Provided that such authorised dealer category — I bank shall exercise the authority subject to directions and guidelines issued to them by the Reserve Bank in that behalf.

(BEWARE THIS ANSWER IS LONG)It depends on alot of factors really.Pilot Writing Fee-The first item you would negotiate in connection with these types of agreements is invariably the pilot script-writing fee. Under the WGA Agreement (which governs most television projects, as all of the major networks are guild signatories), union minimum (or 'scale') for such services is approximately $26,000 for a half hour script and $38,000 for a sixty-minute script. For scale, the studio will be entitled to a story, first draft and final draft of the script (also called a teleplay). In most instances, the studio will bargain for a story, first draft, two sets of a revision and a polish. Usually, the writer/creator will receive more than scale and pilot writing fees can range from $50,000 (for a relatively inexperienced writer) to $250,000 or higher for an A-level television writer (i.e., one who has already created at least one successful series, such as David Milch). As we mentioned above, this is the only money that the writer is guaranteed to receive under the 'one-off' deal.Pilot Producing Services-The next issue of negotiation you would need to concern yourself with is the nature of the writer's services (if any) in the event that your script is well received and the pilot episode is ordered to production. In many cases, the studio will guarantee the writer employment as an 'executive producer' of the pilot episode at a negotiated fee. Other times (for example, if the pilot writer is not an established television writer or 'show-runner'), the studio might agree to attach the writer to the project at a lower level, such as a consulting or supervising producer. The writer's role in connection with the pilot is ultimately a result of negotiation, taking into account the writer's clout and prior experience. The WGA does not govern producing fees, as such services are not deemed to constitute writing. The fees for such producing services can range anywhere from $15,000 to $100,000.Series Services/Compensation-If the pilot is 'picked up' by the network (i.e., series episodes are ordered to production), the studio can choose to exercise its option (negotiated up front, as part of the 'one-off' deal) to engage the writer as some type of producer on the series. A writer's series episodic producer fee will generally be lower than the pilot- producing fee, as there is less work to do once the first episode (i.e., the pilot) is completed.Another point that is negotiated as part of the pilot/series deal is the length of time that that the pilot writer (or 'series creator') will be 'locked' or attached to the series, thereby continuing to receive screen credit and a fee. A studio will usually agree to lock the writer/creator to the series for at least one year, and in many cases two years. Again, this depends largely on the writer's status in the television industry. Top writer/producers, such as Steven Bochco, might be guaranteed an executive producer fee and credit for the 'life' (i.e., duration) of the series. A writer/creator might also be guaranteed the opportunity to write (and be paid for) a specified number of episodic scripts during each year, in addition to series producing fees, you may negotiate for a 'series sales bonus' (i.e., a sum of money payable as a bonus if and when the network orders series episodes based on the pilot). While the dollar amount of a series sales bonus will vary and is subject to negotiation, it is fairly standard today for a series sales bonus of $25,000 to be granted in the event the writer receives sole 'written by' credit on the pilot and sole 'created by' credit on the series. This bonus may be reduced if the writer receives shared credit and/or if fewer than a set number of episodes (usually 12) are actually produced.Finally, the WGA Agreement requires that the writer or writers accorded 'created by' credit on a series receive a royalty (or payment) for each episode of the series that is produced beyond the pilot. The current WGA required royalty for network prime-time programming is approximately $1,000 per episode. Subject to this minimum, the actual amount of the royalty payable to the series creator is negotiable and may be as high as $6,000 per episode for top guns.Profit Participation-A writer's profit participation in a television project is typically more significant than with respect to a feature film, and is more likely to generate payment to the writer for two reasons. First, as television writer, you can normally negotiate for a percentage of the profits in excess of five percent (which is the standard participation for motion picture writers with limited exceptions). In addition, television writers are generally more successful than their feature film counterparts in extracting favorable terms from the studios relating to the calculation of such profits. Second, an enormously successful series may generate so much cash relative to its costs, that regardless of the precise definition of the project's 'net proceeds,' it is likely to generate some payment in many cases.We think it is therefore imperative for a writer's representative to take great care in negotiating the definition of 'project proceeds' in the writer's contract. A top-level showrunner/creator will often be able to negotiate for 15 percent or more of the 'adjusted gross receipts' (gross revenues less certain defined deductions and a reduced distribution fee), or for up to 50 percent of the 'net proceeds,' reducible by net participations granted to third parties. If a project survives the uphill battle toward syndication, these profits may indeed materialize.Credit-Assuming that the production falls within the WGA's jurisdiction, the Writer's Guild Agreement will determine the form of most writing credits. Typically, the writer or writers receiving 'written by' or 'story by' credit on the pilot will be accorded a 'created by' credit on the series. The WGA does not, however, govern producing credits. The terms and conditions relating to the writer's 'executive producer' or 'supervising producer' or even 'consultant' credit need to be specifically addressed by contract. In recent years, a number of established writers have requested 'logo' credits (which will typically appear in the end titles) in addition to their producer credits. For example, a 'Chase Films' logo appears at the end of every episode of The Sopranos at the request of that series' creator, David Chase.Perks-As is the case with most talent agreements, writers can usually negotiate for some basic 'perks' (which may or may not be granted, depending upon their status), such as: (i) first-class travel if the studio or network requires the writer to travel; (ii) first class accommodations; (iii) a per-diem; and (iv) ground transportation to and from airports, hotels, and sets. In addition, some writers request that the studio provide an exclusive office and assistant during all periods in which they are expected to render exclusive services. Finally, a reserved parking space is considered a bit of status symbol in Hollywood and is requested by most series creators. This is merely a brief overview of television pilot/series writer agreements. There are several other terms and conditions that vary from deal to deal, which writers should be aware of when entering into such agreements. Before signing any contract, we strongly recommended that writers consult with an experienced entertainment attorney who can review the agreement in detail.