Kharge Urges Government to Expedite Decadal Census and Caste Census, Cites Welfare Concerns
New Delhi, April 1: Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, Mallikarjun Kharge, on Tuesday demanded that the government immediately commence the decadal census and a caste-based census, emphasizing that the prolonged delay is excluding a vast section of the population from welfare schemes and disrupting policymaking.
Raising the issue during Zero Hour in the Upper House, the senior Congress leader criticized the delay, highlighting that India has conducted a census every 10 years since 1881, even during periods of wars, national emergencies, and crises. He pointed out that a caste census was conducted in 1931 alongside the regular census and quoted Mahatma Gandhi, who once compared the census to a medical checkup for a nation, essential for assessing its socio-economic health.
Kharge underscored the importance of census data, which goes beyond just population statistics to include employment, family structures, socio-economic conditions, and key demographic indicators. He stressed that even during World War II and the 1971 Indo-Pak war, India did not delay its census, making the current postponement unprecedented and alarming.
He further argued that a caste census is feasible, as the government already collects data on Scheduled Castes (SC) and Scheduled Tribes (ST) and could easily expand this to include Other Backward Classes (OBCs) and other caste groups. However, he accused the government of deliberate silence on both the general and caste census, raising questions about its intent.
Kharge pointed out that 81% of countries worldwide have successfully conducted their censuses despite COVID-19, while India remains without a clear commitment from the government. He also noted that the Union Budget for 2024-25 has allocated only ₹575 crore for the census, an amount he termed inadequate and reflective of the government’s reluctance to undertake the exercise.
Highlighting the serious implications of the delay, Kharge warned that key welfare programs and surveys—including the Consumer Survey, National Family Health Survey (NFHS), Periodic Labour Force Survey, National Food Security Act (NFSA), and the National Social Assistance Programme (NSAP)—depend on census data for effective implementation. Without updated statistics, policies risk becoming arbitrary and ineffective, leading to large sections of society being left out of welfare benefits.
“The government must act without further delay and initiate both the decadal census and a caste-based census, ensuring that no section of the population is deprived of its due rights and entitlements,” Kharge asserted.
