Affirmative Action: Diverging Perspectives

The debate, on affirmative action seems to be focusing on the meaning and relevance of merit and efficiency. It is being conveniently forgotten that merit is a cognitive ability, the power to perceive and to grasp the social reality. Further, merit is being juxtaposed with an individual’s entitlements, which makes the concept doubly complex. The attributes of merit, as are being defined by the corporate sector, are based on the notions of heredity and ascription, rather than being socially constructed. The question of merit, therefore, demands a sustained and careful analysis and indeed needs to answer - how to detect merit?; how to define merit?; and how to ascertain and establish a proper sphere of influence for merit?