{"id":335810,"date":"2025-05-06T20:58:01","date_gmt":"2025-05-06T15:28:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/?p=335810"},"modified":"2025-05-12T20:16:20","modified_gmt":"2025-05-12T14:46:20","slug":"caste-census-will-reshape-indias-social-justice","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/caste-census-will-reshape-indias-social-justice\/","title":{"rendered":"Caste census will reshape India\u2019s social justice"},"content":{"rendered":"

Source<\/strong>: The post Caste census will reshape India\u2019s social justice has been created, based on the article \u201cCaste census announcement is an opportunity to fine-tune reservation policy<\/strong>\u201d published in \u201cIndian Express<\/strong>\u201d on 6 May 2025. Caste census will reshape India\u2019s social justice.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Caste<\/p>\n

UPSC Syllabus Topic:<\/strong> GS Paper1- Society- Social justice<\/p>\n

Context<\/strong>: The caste census announcement marks a turning point in India\u2019s social justice policy. It ends the long neglect of counting OBCs officially. With a shift in the government\u2019s stance, the focus now moves to how it will be conducted and what changes it may trigger in affirmative action.<\/p>\n

For detailed information on Caste Census <\/strong>\u2013 Significance and Challenges<\/strong> read this article here<\/a><\/p>\n

Political Shift and Historical Oversight<\/strong><\/h2>\n
    \n
  1. Motivation Behind the Move: <\/strong>This is a political decision. It aims to counter Rahul Gandhi\u2019s push for caste enumeration, which challenges the BJP\u2019s non-savarna voter base.<\/li>\n
  2. Shared Responsibility for Delay: <\/strong>Delays are due to both major parties. The Vajpayee government dropped the caste census in 2000. Congress separated caste from the 2011 Census. The BJP government later withheld SECC data.<\/li>\n
  3. Who Deserves Credit: <\/strong>Historically, credit goes to leaders like Lohia, Karpoori Thakur, Madhu Limaye, and Sharad Yadav<\/strong>. Politically, Rahul Gandhi<\/strong>\u2019<\/strong>s insistence<\/strong> made caste census a national issue and led to this policy shift. This is his first major success as Leader of the Opposition.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Ensuring Timely and Transparent Implementation<\/strong><\/h2>\n
      \n
    1. Integrating with the Main Census: <\/strong>The caste enumeration must be conducted as part of the regular decennial Census<\/strong>, not as a parallel or isolated survey. This prevents bureaucratic delays and ensures legitimacy.<\/li>\n
    2. Counting All Castes Without Exception: <\/strong>The exercise should include every caste<\/strong>, not just SCs, STs, and OBCs. Enumerating castes from the so-called \u201cgeneral\u201d category is essential to understand the full landscape of caste-based privileges<\/strong>.<\/li>\n
    3. Keeping It Free from Political Interference: <\/strong>There should be no link between caste enumeration and the National Population Register (NPR)<\/strong>. Tying the two together may derail the process through controversy or public resistance.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      Expanding the Scope of Data Collection<\/strong><\/h2>\n
        \n
      1. Capturing Detailed Caste Identity: <\/strong>The new Census must record the exact jati<\/strong> of every person, not just their broad category (SC, ST, OBC, General). This is essential to uncover internal disparities within each category.<\/li>\n
      2. Including Socio-Economic Indicators: <\/strong>Key data points from the 2011 Socio-Economic and Caste Census (SECC)<\/strong>\u2014such as land ownership, enterprise, government job, and occupation\u2014should be included in the upcoming Census. These variables provide a more accurate socio-economic profile of each caste.<\/li>\n
      3. Filling the Data Gaps Through Other Surveys: <\/strong>Some high-value data cannot be captured in the Census alone. This includes caste-wise details of ownership of top businesses, senior government positions, private sector leadership, elite educational access, and political roles<\/strong>. These gaps must be addressed through existing national surveys like the Economic Census, Agricultural Census, Labour Force Survey, and educational and company data<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

        Pushing Boundaries of Social Justice<\/strong><\/h2>\n
          \n
        1. Raising the Quota Limit: <\/strong>If OBCs are over 45% of the population, this may justify increasing the 27% quota. It would challenge the 50% ceiling<\/strong>, which was overlooked for EWS.<\/li>\n
        2. Including the Private Sector: <\/strong>If disparities are seen in private jobs and education, affirmative action must extend to the private sector and private institutions<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

          Using Data to Reform Affirmative Action<\/strong><\/h2>\n
            \n
          1. Refining OBC List and Quotas: <\/strong>Census data should help revise the OBC list<\/strong>, removing or adding jatis as required.<\/li>\n
          2. Sub-Quotas Within Categories: <\/strong>It will allow for sub-quotas within SC, ST, and OBC<\/strong> categories. Courts demand such evidence-based reform.<\/li>\n
          3. Revisiting EWS Quota: <\/strong>Data may question the basis for the 10% EWS quota<\/strong>, based on actual deprivation levels.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

            Question for practice:<\/strong><\/p>\n

            Examine<\/strong> how the proposed caste census marks a shift in India\u2019s social justice approach and its potential impact on affirmative action policies.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

            Source: The post Caste census will reshape India\u2019s social justice has been created, based on the article \u201cCaste census announcement is an opportunity to fine-tune reservation policy\u201d published in \u201cIndian Express\u201d on 6 May 2025. Caste census will reshape India\u2019s social justice. UPSC Syllabus Topic: GS Paper1- Society- Social justice Context: The caste census announcement… Continue reading Caste census will reshape India\u2019s social justice<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10320,"featured_media":336425,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1230],"tags":[263,10500,264],"class_list":["post-335810","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-9-pm-daily-articles","tag-gs-paper-1","tag-indian-express","tag-society","entry"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Caste-census-will-reshape-Indias-social-justice.png?fit=1280%2C850&ssl=1","views":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/335810","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10320"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=335810"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/335810\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/336425"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=335810"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=335810"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=335810"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}