Ahead of the Assembly elections this year, the Rajasthan government has decided to conduct a caste census in the state. This comes days after the Bihar government released its caste census report on October 2.
Speaking on the media, Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot stated that his government would issue an order for caste census as it is very much necessary. "The caste census is necessary as it will help the government to know the number of people and for whom the policies are to be made," he said.
Gehlot seconds Rahul Gandhi's concept
The Rajasthan Chief Minister also echoed Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's 'greater the population, the greater the rights' pledge. "We will take Rahul Gandhi ji's concept forward by conducting the caste census," Gehlot added. According to the 2011 census, the current estimated population of Rajasthan is approximately 8.36 crores.
Meanwhile, State Congress Committee chief Govind Singh Dotasara said that soon there will be six big public meetings of Congress in Rajasthan. He said that leaders like Rahul Gandhi, Mallikarjun Kharge and Priyanka Gandhi would participate in those meetings, he added.
Earlier, Gandhi had reiterated his demands to give people rights based on their population after the Bihar Government released caste survey data. He said that the caste census of the Bihar government shows the importance of knowing the caste statistics of the country.
Bihar caste census
The Bihar government's caste survey reveals that Other Backward Classes (OBCs) and Extremely Backward Classes (EBCs) constitute more than 63 per cent of that state's population. According to the data released the by Development Commissioner, Bihar’s total population is a little above 13.07 crore, of which the Extremely Backward Classes constitute the largest social segment (36 per cent) followed by the Other Backward Classes (27.13 per cent).
Dalits, also known as Scheduled Castes (SCs) accounted for 19.65 per cent and the Scheduled Tribes (STs) 1.68 per cent. The general (unreserved) category comprises 15.52 per cent of the total population in the state. Meanwhile, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar also expressed confidence that the caste survey conducted by his government will provide an impetus for a nationwide census of all social groups.
Rajasthan Assembly elections 2023
It should be noted here that the Rajasthan Legislative Assembly election is scheduled to be held in or before November 2023 to elect all 200 members. The tenure of the state Legislative Assembly is scheduled to end on 14 January 2024. The previous assembly elections were held in December 2018.
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