India will count caste for the first time since 1931
Sometimes accountability works the other way: a long-resisted demand is finally met. Here’s one.
On 30 April 2025, the Union Cabinet announced that caste will be enumerated in the upcoming national census — the first official caste count since 1931, under British rule.
It marks a genuine shift. For years the government had resisted the demand, arguing it could deepen social divisions; the reversal followed sustained pressure from opposition parties and the salience of the issue in the 2024 elections.
Why the count matters
India runs one of the world’s largest affirmative-action systems, yet the data underpinning it is nearly a century old. Bihar’s own 2023 caste survey found far more people in marginalised groups than assumed — fuelling demands to revisit reservation quotas.
Better data can make policy fairer and more targeted. The census will run in two stages, with enumeration slated to conclude by 1 March 2027.
The test now
The credit is real — but the value depends on execution: an accurate, transparent count, with the data published openly so citizens and courts can use it. A census promised is good; a census delivered and disclosed is what counts.
Sources · Free to verify
This is a sourced explainer built on public data — not original reporting. Every figure traces to a source above.