Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar on Wednesday once again batted for caste-based census in the state.
“I have been saying for a long time that once caste-based census must be done, as it will give a clear idea about the population of different castes. It will help in planning for them,” he said.
Kumar said that he also sent two resolutions, passed by the Bihar Legislature, to the Centre in this regard. “It should be done once to clear the picture. It was done earlier, but since Independence it has not happened. Therefore, we need it to happen,” he said, while talking to the media at the party office.
Kumar said that Bihar already has clearly identified backward classes and extremely backward classes since the days of Karpoori Thakur government. “We want the Centre to adopt the same for more benefit to the people. At present, there is only one category at the Centre,” he added.
Kumar’s statement is significant in the wake of the Justice Rohini Commission’s proposal for sub-categorisation of reservation for other backward castes (OBCs) in the government sector. The commission has recommended splitting 27% reservation for the OBCs into different categories for equitable distribution of benefits among different sub-castes to ensure that the benefits reached the really deprived sections.
The commission was set up in 2017 to look into the issue of sub-categorisation of within the OBCs. After several extensions, it submitted its report earlier this month, diving 2633 OBC castes in the Central list into four sub-categories for split of 27% quota into 2, 6, 9 and 10%.
{{/usCountry}}The commission was set up in 2017 to look into the issue of sub-categorisation of within the OBCs. After several extensions, it submitted its report earlier this month, diving 2633 OBC castes in the Central list into four sub-categories for split of 27% quota into 2, 6, 9 and 10%.
{{/usCountry}}Though there is no official data available on the actual strengths of different castes, all the estimates are based on projections from old caste census, which was last done in 1931. There have often been demands for it and some initiatives were also taken, but it could not materialize, even as caste remained an overriding factor for getting the electoral arithmetic right. Only the economic data could come out.
As per projections from figures of 1931 Census for specific Hindu castes and 1961 Census for all others, backward classes constitute 51.3% population in the state. Many political parties feel the numbers have changed and a fresh caste-based census is the need of the hour.
Social economic and caste census (SECC) - 2011 was carried out by state rural development departments on instructions of central rural development ministry. However, caste data could not be made public citing discrepancies. Till date, census only makes count of religion and also the SC/ST population.
In 2019, the Bihar Legislative Assembly had passed two government resolutions – one favouring caste-wise census in 2021 and another for continuing with the old 200-point roster system, which treats university as the unit, not the 13-point roster system that treats department as the unit.
In 2020, ahead of the state elections, the Bihar Assembly again passed two resolutions – one against the contentious National Register of Citizens (NRC) exercise in the state and another for caste-based census in 2021. They were passed unanimously.