India has one of the most extensive affirmative-action programmes in the world. Reservation developed as a constitutional response to deeply rooted caste-based exclusion and continuing inequalities in education, employment and social life. Its purpose is based on substantive equality, because treating everyone the same on paper does little when people begin from unequal social positions. Recent evidence shows that caste still affects education, occupation and wealth, while affirmative action has created real opportunities for historically disadvantaged groups. This raises an important question: if affirmative action is meant to create a society where caste matters less to a person’s opportunities, status and treatment, should the policy itself remain permanently fixed? I suggest a concept called Dynamic Affirmative Action. Its basic idea separates caste identity from eligibility for affirmative-action benefits. A person’s caste would not change. An SC remains SC, an ST remains ST, an OBC/BC remains OBC/BC, and an unreserved person remains part of their community. What can change is eligibility for a particular benefit as a person’s economic, educational and social circumstances change. An SC individual who makes substantial progress could gradually move to a lower level of protection or eventually to the open category without losing their SC identity. Similarly, an OBC/BC individual could lose eligibility after sustained progress, while a seriously disadvantaged person from an unreserved community could receive appropriate support without being reclassified. The principle is simple: collective disadvantage should not mean collective immobility. The proposal also recognises concerns about stigma and unfair treatment faced by affirmative-action beneficiaries, while acknowledging that the evidence is not conclusive. This is not a call to abolish reservation. It is a gradual, evidence-based shift towards a system that remains protective but becomes more dynamic, individualised and responsive to changing circumstances, helping affirmative action move from corrective justice towards transformative equality.