Patna (Bihar) [India] : A couple of days after the Bihar government released caste survey data, Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Yadav asserted that caste census should be carried out throughout the country.
The report of the caste-based survey conducted in Bihar was released on Monday by the Nitish Kumar-led Mahagathbandhan government. The Congress is an ally of the government in Bihar.
“We have conducted a caste census in Bihar, it should be carried out throughout the country. Poor people and Dalits of the country will benefit from this,” Lalu Yadav said.
Earlier, the RJD chief called the caste survey report a “historic moment”.
“The state government should ensure that it gives representation to people as per their numbers in the state. I firmly believe that people of every caste should get a fair right to the state’s resources. When we form the government in 2024, we will conduct a caste-based census in the entire country,” Lalu Prasad Yadav said.
“This data will be used to make policies for the marginalised sections of society. It will give representation to people as per their strength in the state’s resources and will set an example in the country,” he said.
“The extremely backward class is 36.01 per cent, the general category is 15.52 per cent and the Other Backward Caste (OBC) is 27 per cent,” Vivek Kumar Singh, Bihar’s Additional Chief Secretary said.
According to the data, Scheduled Castes make up 19.65 per cent and the Scheduled Tribes 1.68 per cent of the population of the state.
The data also said that the Hindus comprise 81.99 per cent of the population, Muslims 17.7 per cent, Christians 0.05 per cent, Sikhs 0.01 per cent, Buddhists 0.08 per cent and other religions 0.12 per cent.
The data said that Yadavs, the OBC group to which Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav belongs, is the largest and accounts for 14.27 per cent of the state’s population.
Kushwaha and Kurmi communities form 4.27 per cent and 2.87 per cent of the population, the caste survey said. Bhumihars constitute 2.86 per cent of the population, Brahmins 3.66 per cent, Kurmis 2.87 per cent, and Musahars 3 per cent.
