The National Commission for Backward Classes decides how much reservation OBCs get in jobs or schools.

The Commission investigates, monitors, and recommends — it does not itself set reservation percentages or quotas; that is done through laws and government policy, sometimes reviewed by courts.

States always need this Commission's approval to change their OBC lists.

Under the proviso to clause (9), States making or altering their own list of socially and educationally backward classes under Article 342A(3) do not need to consult this Commission.

This Commission is the same as the National Commission for Scheduled Castes or Scheduled Tribes.

It is a separate constitutional body (Article 338B) specifically for socially and educationally backward classes, distinct from the SC Commission (Article 338) and ST Commission (Article 338A).

The Constitution of India

Article 338B

National Commission for Backward Classes

(1) There shall be a Commission for the socially and educationally backward classes to be known as the National Commission for Backward Classes.§

(2) Subject to the provisions of any law made in this behalf by Parliament, the Commission shall consist of a Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson and three other Members and the conditions of service and tenure of office of the Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson and other Members so appointed shall be such as the President may by rule determine.§

(3) The Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson and other Members of the Commission shall be appointed by the President by warrant under his hand and seal.§

(4) The Commission shall have the power to regulate its own procedure.§

(5) It shall be the duty of the Commission—§

(a) to investigate and monitor all matters relating to the safeguards provided for the socially and educationally backward classes under this Constitution or under any other law for the time being in force or under any order of the Government and to evaluate the working of such safeguards;§

(b) to inquire into specific complaints with respect to the deprivation of rights and safeguards of the socially and educationally backward classes;§

(c) to participate and advise on the socio-economic development of the socially and educationally backward classes and to evaluate the progress of their development under the Union and any State; (d) to present to the President, annually and at such other times as the Commission may deem fit, reports upon the working of those safeguards;§

(e) to make in such reports the recommendations as to the measures that should be taken by the Union or any State for the effective implementation of those safeguards and other measures for the protection, welfare and socio-economic development of the socially and educationally backward classes; and§

(f) to discharge such other functions in relation to the protection, welfare and development and advancement of the socially and educationally backward classes as the President may, subject to the provisions of any law made by Parliament, by rule specify.§

(6) The President shall cause all such reports to be laid before each House of Parliament along with a memorandum explaining the action taken or proposed to be taken on the recommendations relating to the Union and the reasons for the non-acceptance, if any, of any such recommendations.§

(7) Where any such report, or any part thereof, relates to any matter with which any State Government is concerned, a copy of such report shall be forwarded to the State Government which shall cause it to be laid before the Legislature of the State along with a memorandum explaining the action taken or proposed to be taken on the recommendations relating to the State and the reasons for the non-acceptance, if any, of any of such recommendations.§

(8) The Commission shall, while investigating any matter referred to in sub-clause (a) or inquiring into any complaint referred to in sub-clause (b) of clause (5), have all the powers of a civil court trying a suit and in particular in respect of the following matters, namely :—§

(a) summoning and enforcing the attendance of any person from any part of India and examining him on oath;§

(b) requiring the discovery and production of any document;§

(d) requisitioning any public record or copy thereof from any court or office;§

(e) issuing commissions for the examination of witnesses and documents;§

(f) any other matter which the President may by rule, determine.§

(9) The Union and every State Government shall consult the Commission on all major policy matters affecting the socially and educationally backward classes: Provided that nothing in this clause shall apply for the purposes of clause (3) of article 342A.§

Why this exists

Before 2018, the National Commission for Backward Classes existed only as a body created by an ordinary law (the NCBC Act, 1993), following the Mandal Commission report and the Supreme Court's judgment in Indra Sawhney (1992), which required a permanent mechanism to identify and protect backward classes. To give this body the same strong constitutional standing as the Commissions for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Articles 338 and 338A), Parliament passed the Constitution (One Hundred and Second Amendment) Act, 2018, inserting Article 338B. This made the NCBC a constitutional authority with investigative powers, reporting duties to Parliament and State legislatures, and a mandatory consultation role in government policymaking affecting backward classes.

How courts read it

In Dr. Jaishri Laxmanrao Patil v. Union of India (2021), the Supreme Court examined the linked Article 342A and held that after the 102nd Amendment, only Parliament (through the President's list) could identify socially and educationally backward classes for a State, stripping States of their earlier power to prepare their own OBC lists — a ruling that caused the Maratha reservation to be struck down. This triggered strong political and federal concerns, leading Parliament to pass the Constitution (One Hundred and Fifth Amendment) Act, 2021, which added clause (3) to Article 342A restoring States' power to maintain their own backward classes lists for State purposes. The proviso to Article 338B(9) reflects this fix, clarifying that such State-list decisions do not require the National Commission's consultation.

Common misconceptions

Myth: The National Commission for Backward Classes decides how much reservation OBCs get in jobs or schools.
Fact: The Commission investigates, monitors, and recommends — it does not itself set reservation percentages or quotas; that is done through laws and government policy, sometimes reviewed by courts.
Myth: States always need this Commission's approval to change their OBC lists.
Fact: Under the proviso to clause (9), States making or altering their own list of socially and educationally backward classes under Article 342A(3) do not need to consult this Commission.
Myth: This Commission is the same as the National Commission for Scheduled Castes or Scheduled Tribes.
Fact: It is a separate constitutional body (Article 338B) specifically for socially and educationally backward classes, distinct from the SC Commission (Article 338) and ST Commission (Article 338A).