Caste, SC, ST status included
NEW DELHI, AUG 14 (PTI): The Centre on Friday notified 40 questions, including for the first time queries on caste, to be asked of respondents during the population enumeration phase of the Census, set to begin from September 1 in snow-bound areas, a government order said.
The order from Registrar General of India Mrityunjay Kumar Narayan notifies questions such as whether the person belongs to a Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled Tribe and their caste.
The population enumeration in Ladakh and snow-bound non-synchronous areas of Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand, will take place from September 1 to 30, according to a gazette notification issued earlier this month.
“For the conduct of the above Census, there shall be an option for self-enumeration from August 17 to 31 just before the start of house-to-house population enumeration,” it said.
In the rest of the country, the population enumeration (PE) will begin next year. This will be the first time when caste details will be collected as part of the Census.
The questionnaire is unlikely to carry a list of castes, and the responses will be recorded as shared by respondents, sources said. The decision to include caste enumeration was taken by the Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on April 30 last year.
“In exercise of the powers conferred by sub-section (1) of section 8 of the Census Act, 1948 (Act 37 of 1948), the Central Government hereby instructs and directs that the census officers may, within the limits of the local area for which they have been respectively appointed, ask all such questions of all persons residing within such limits, subject to the items enumerated below, for collecting information through the Household Schedule in connection with the Census of India 2027,” a notification from Registrar General of India said.
The respondents will be asked for personal details, such as marital status, age at marriage, spouse name, nationality, religion, Scheduled Caste (SC)/Scheduled Tribe (ST), caste, particulars of parents, disability, mother tongue, and other languages known, literacy, and digital literacy status, among others. The biggest headcount of the world will be a totally digital enterprise.
Respondents will also be asked for attendance in an educational institution, highest educational level, stream, discipline, if they worked at any time during the last year, category of economic activity, occupation, nature of industry, trade or service, class of worker and if engaged in non-economic activity (for marginal, semi-marginal and non-worker).
Whether they are available for work (for marginal, semi-marginal and non-worker) and if they travel to their place of work will also be part of the questionnaire.
The enumerators will also ask for the birthplace of respondents, place of last residence, reason for migration, duration of stay in this village/town since last migration, and permanent residential address, it said.
Currently married, widowed, divorced and separated women will be asked for the number of children surviving at present, the number of children in the current marriage, and the number of children born alive in the last one year.
The respondents will also be asked about the place of Covid-19 vaccination, total number of bank accounts, mobile number, Aadhaar Number, Voter ID number, Passport number, and whether they possess a driving licence, it said.
The first phase — house listing and housing census (HLO) — is on till September 30.
Field visits for the housing listing and housing census began on April 16 in several states and union territories.
Enumerators are listing all structures, houses and households across the country to create a foundation for population enumeration.
During the housing listing operations, enumerators physically visit each house and building and ask respondents 33 questions regarding the basic facilities in their homes, the details of the head of the household such as name and sex, and ownership status.
The decadal exercise, scheduled for 2021, was postponed due to the COVID-19 outbreak.
The Union Cabinet has approved Rs 11,718 crore to carry out Census.
Aadhaar, bank accounts required alongside caste details
In addition to caste details, the Census will, for the first time, collect personal information such as the total number of bank accounts held by individuals, along with their mobile number, Aadhaar number, voter ID number, passport number and driving licence status, according to the 40 questions notified by the Registrar General of India on Friday.
The questionnaires from previous Censuses, from 1872 to 2011, available on the Census Department’s website, do not include questions seeking details of such documents held by respondents.
Traditionally, the Census collected information on whether the respondent belongs to the Scheduled Caste or Scheduled Tribe category. However, the upcoming decadal exercise will collect caste information for all respondents for the first time since Independence.
Respondents must answer questions to the best of “their knowledge or belief”, which enumerators will record digitally or on paper (in unavoidable circumstances).
In response to a written question from TMC MP Shatrughan Prasad Sinha seeking to know whether disclosing caste for the census would be optional, Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai stated in December that under sub-section (2) of section 8 of the Census Act, 1948, the respondent is required to answer questions to the best of their knowledge or belief.
The Government of India has not enumerated caste-wise population other than SCs and STs in the Census since Independence, he said in response to another question. The Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, decided to include caste enumeration in the upcoming census on April 30 last year.
Respondents must provide personal details, marital status, age at marriage, spouse’s name, nationality as declared, parents’ particulars, disability status, mother tongue and other languages known, literacy and digital literacy status, among others.
During the world’s biggest headcount, a fully digital endeavour, respondents will answer questions on “attendance status in educational institutions” and the highest educational level attained, among others.
“Census is conducted under the provisions of the Census Act, 1948, and Census Rules, 1990, and amendments made thereunder. Individual data collected in the Census is kept confidential and only aggregated data at various administrative levels is published,” Rai said in response to another question in March this year.
The latest circular issued by the Registrar General of India (RGI) clarified that any officer who intentionally asks “any offensive or improper question” during the Census 2027 will face punishment, including imprisonment up to three years upon conviction.
The population enumeration in Ladakh and snow-bound non-synchronous areas of Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand will take place from September 1 to 30, according to a gazette notification issued earlier this month.
“For the conduct of the above Census, there will be an option for self-enumeration from August 17 to 31 just before the start of house-to-house population enumeration,” it said.
In the rest of the country, the population enumeration (PE) will begin next year.
The decennial exercise, scheduled for 2021, was postponed due to the COVID-19 outbreak. The Union Cabinet has approved Rs 11,718 crore for conducting the Census.