Villupuram MP urges Centre to conduct caste-wise population census

VILLUPURAM: Villupuram MP D Ravikumar has urged the Union government to initiate efforts to conduct a caste-wise population census in the country immediately to ensure social justice.

In a letter addressed to Union home minister Amit Shah, Ravikumar said the last census was conducted in India in 2011 and the BJP-led NDA government, which assumed charge later, postponed the decennial counting measure indefinitely.

He said the Union govt asserted that Census 2021 had to be postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

However, India is one of the 44 out of 233 countries that have not conducted their latest census. Of the 189 nations (81%) that managed to conduct their latest census, 143 did so after March 2020 when Covid-19 began to affect countries worldwide.

By not conducting the census, India shares the dubious distinction with conflict-ridden countries such as Ukraine, Yemen, Syria, Myanmar, Taliban-ruled Afghanistan and economically affected nations like Sri Lanka besides several sub-Saharan African countries that have also undergone turmoil.

Ravikumar pointed out that the postponement of the population census affects many surveys. “The consumption survey 2022-23, which collects data on the consumption of goods and services to understand the expenditure patterns and standard of living, used the 2011 census for sampling. The national family health survey 2019-21, which highlights districts where health services are inadequate, also relied on the 2011 figures. Schemes such as National Food security Act, which identifies beneficiaries entitled to receive subsidized food grains, are still being implemented using 2011 figures,” he said.

He said beyond food security, the lack of updated census data has also affected the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme as the Union government allocates funds to each state based on the number of households and labourers in the state. State govts are also struggling to allocate funds for various schemes aimed at the development of SC/ST communities, old-age pensions, and housing for the poor due to the absence of current figures, he said.

“Schemes beneficial to tribals such as the Eklavya Model Residential School, which aims at providing quality education to ST children will miss out on many areas. Additionally, constitutional courts have repeatedly struck down acts passed by the state governments to increase the percentage of reservations, citing the lack of caste census data. Bihar is the most recent example. Therefore, conducting a caste-wise population census is urgently needed to ensure social justice. I also want to note that I have raised this demand in the 17th Lok Sabha through questions and memorandums. I earnestly request that the work for conducting the population census be initiated immediately,” Ravikumar said.