A caste census is not a silver bullet for social justice

The Hindu

18-05-2025

Census data have long been the backbone of public policymaking in India, offering critical insights into sectors such as health, education, employment and housing. In this context, the Narendra Modi government's recent announcement to include caste enumeration in the upcoming national Census has drawn considerable attention. For many, it represents a long-overdue move toward collecting substantive statistical data that are necessary to better address the needs of the Other Backward Classes (OBCs). However, the disproportionate emphasis placed on the caste census raises concerns about the intent and the commitment of the ruling dispensation. It suggests that the formulation of welfare policies for marginalised communities has been unjustifiably deferred under the pretext of awaiting more precise data.
The merit of caste census
Proponents of a caste census argue that it will provide empirical grounding to assess the socio-economic status of various caste groups, particularly the OBCs. They believe that this data will enable more targeted affirmative action and help the state legitimise welfare programmes in the eyes of the judiciary, which has sometimes questioned the reliability of surveys and commission reports. Additionally, disaggregated data within the OBC category could help identify intra-group socio-economic inequalities, thereby informing new policies for the Extremely Backward Classes (EBCs) within the OBCs.
While these arguments are not without merit, they risk overstating what a caste census can achieve on its own. Caste enumeration should certainly be a regular institutional practice in a diverse society such as India. But to elevate the Census data as a precondition for social and economic justice or as the central document for policymaking is a flawed and potentially dangerous misreading of its purpose.
The Registrar General of India's role is to collect and present neutral, factual data and not to direct the government to design social welfare policies. Elevating the Census into a tool for political reform burdens the institution beyond its mandate and risks politicising its work. It is vital to maintain the objectivity of Census operations, especially in a polarised political environment. Importantly, it is the responsibility of the ruling political elites to have public policies for the welfare of vulnerable social groups, based on the available sources of information and empirical evidence.
Empirical evidence
More crucially, policies for social justice have historically not waited for perfect data. Landmark initiatives such as reservations, land reforms, and the implementation of the Mandal Commission's recommendations were driven not by statistical revelations but by political struggle, mass mobilisation, and the moral commitment of the ruling political class. Public policy in India is often shaped more by electoral strategies, ideological inclinations, and public pressure than by spreadsheets or survey graphs. For example, the Modi government's decision to implement the reservation policy for the Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) was not based on any substantive statistical data or commission report. Instead it only shows that the ruling dispensation has an authoritative power to execute such policy.
Moreover, extensive data about caste-based inequality already exists. Since Independence, Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) have been part of the decennial Census. But Census and complementary national surveys (such as the National Sample Survey Organization/Office, National Family Health Survey) continue to highlight their persistent educational, economic, and social disadvantages. The National Crime Records Bureau has documented a consistent rise in crimes against these communities — from sexual violence to atrocities under the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
Likewise, the Bihar Caste Survey and the earlier Socio-Economic and Caste Census (SECC) have laid bare the deep economic vulnerabilities and heterogeneity within the OBC category. These reports show that a vast majority of OBCs remain stuck in informal, insecure, low-income employment, with little to no social security or opportunity for mobility.
Despite this abundance of data, the central government has yet to implement bold or transformative policy reforms. For OBCs in particular, there remains a conspicuous policy vacuum at the national level. Importantly, multiple academic researches and reports have demonstrated that in influential sectors of private economy (corporates, the IT industry, and media houses) the representation of SCs/STs and OBCs is marginal. However, no substantial measures have been taken to increase their representation in such institutions of power and privileges. Also, they lack participation in state-run institutions especially in higher education, the judiciary and the top bureaucracy.
Social justice needs robust political will
Available empirical evidence using various surveys, reports and research highlights a fundamental truth — that data does not necessarily drive public policy. Instead, it is the intent of the governing class and people's democratic pressure that crafts public policy. A caste census may help sharpen the diagnosis, but it cannot administer the cure. Data is only the map; it cannot chart the journey by itself. If India is to move toward a more just and inclusive future, the focus must remain on the moral and political imagination of its ruling class. Without political will, empirical evidence remains inert. The real test of the current national government lies not in collecting information on caste-based socio-economic stratification, but in executing effective policy measures, with courage and commitment, for the welfare of the worst-off social groups.
Harish S. Wankhede is Assistant Professor, Centre for Political Studies, School of Social Sciences, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi