Caste Census: NCBC chief says 2011 survey proforma riddled with errors, mistake was to not list castes first

The Hindu

02-05-2025

One of the primary failings of the 2011 Socio Economic and Caste Census conducted by the then United Progressive Alliance government was that the proforma for it was riddled with errors and the government had not bothered to create a list of castes across the country, Hansraj Gangaram Ahir, Chairperson of the National Commission for Backward Classes said on Friday (May 2, 2025).
Mr. Ahir said, 'This is why citizens entered whatever they wanted in the field of caste and the survey ended up showing lakhs and lakhs of castes, which is an absurdity. There should be a list of castes first.'
While Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes across the country have been enumerated in every decadal Census in independent India, the forthcoming Census with caste enumeration will be the first time an opportunity will arise for the country's Other Backward Classes to be enumerated.
Mr. Ahir told The Hindu on Friday, 'The government has taken a very well-thought decision on the caste enumeration. This is what the people wanted, and the government has heard them. It was not rushed and is part of its long-term plan for social justice. The task of listing all castes and enumerating them is a challenging one but I have full confidence that the government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi will carry this out honestly and correctly.'
The Hindu reported earlier that anthropologists and populations scientists, within and outside the government, have stressed on the importance of listing out castes before enumeration to avoid the same mistakes made in the 2011 caste census.
Apart from the 1931 Census of India, which recorded over 4,147 castes and sub-castes, there is no comprehensive repository of all castes and communities across the country. The only public resource compiled by a government agency comes from the People of India project of the Anthropological Survey of India, which had tabulated 4,635 'communities', including SC, ST, and OBC groups and General category castes and communities.
Mr. Ahir said, 'It will be a long process to compile the castes, create the correct proforma, and enumerate them. There may be errors but there is no reason to believe that this government will not address these issues as and when they come up. I am confident that this attempt will be streamlined for accuracy.'
The NCBC chief, who derives his constitutional authority from the 102nd Constitutional Amendment brought in by the Narendra Modi government, added, 'The decision to enumerate castes follows a series of decisions the government has taken for the benefit of Backward Classes, including the Constitutional amendment to give NCBC constitutional status.'