Congress Rajya Sabha MP Jairam Ramesh on Thursday said that the delay of 3.5 years in conducting the census has resulted in 12 crore Indians not getting rations under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Ann Yojana.
The last general census was conducted in 2011.
“There has been no official statement yet. It has only been reported in the newspapers that the government is planning to conduct a census.
But, the census which is conducted every 10 years and was due in 2021, has been delayed by 3.5 years. As a result, approximately 12 crore Indians who were receiving rations under the National Food Security Act, 2013 or the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Ann Yojana are no longer receiving it,” he said.
Jairam told that the Centre should include another column in the census questionnaire about OBCs.
“There is another consequence of this delay. The census collects information about the population of Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs), including the indigenous Scheduled Castes.
The Congress has always demanded that if you are conducting a caste census, why not include Other Backward Classes (OBCs)? The government could simply add a question in the questionnaire asking whether someone belongs to the OBC category. This is the easiest way,” he said.
The Congress MP also mentioned that Entry 69 in the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution, Union List states that conducting the census is the responsibility of the Central Government.
“We demand that when you conduct the census, please add a question asking whether someone belongs to an OBC and, if so, which OBC. This will essentially become a caste census.
The 50 per cent reservation limit imposed by the Supreme Court for SCs, STs, and OBCs is not in the Constitution. To address this, there is a need for a constitutional amendment.
States may conduct caste surveys, but conducting the census falls under the Union List, meaning it is the responsibility of the Central Government,” Jairam said. (ANI)
