Salman Khurshid, Minister for corporate affairs and minority affairs, has said that the government believes in affirmative actions to achieve inclusive growth, and a mandatory reservation in the private sector is not the only solution to help the deprived sections of society.  

The UPA government, during its first term, had urged the private sector to design an inclusive hiring policy for uplifting the financial status of the socially underprivileged people. The government will now increase scholarship for minority community students, besides introducing scholarship schemes for PhD students.   

Speaking at a conference organized by CII, Mr. Khurshid said: “Affirmative action is a part of good governance and reaches out further than reservations. We are not going to dictate the industry in terms of affirmative action. Instead, the industry and the government need to work together on this.”

Meanwhile, the CII has opposed any move to introduce job reservations based on a person’s caste, a policy already implemented by public sector companies.  

Mr. Khurshid also held a meeting with industry leaders, seeking their opinions about effective corporate governance, and further amendments in the Companies Bill to be tabled in the ongoing Parliament session.

He said: "We discussed a number of issues such as role and responsibility of independent directors, statutory auditors and quick expedition of judicial verdicts."