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The Karnataka State Commission for Backward Classes on Tuesday extended the deadline for those who couldn't participate in the Social and Educational Survey -- widely referred to as the "caste census" -- in the state for different reasons. They can enumerate online till November 30. The actual survey, with enumerators gathering data door-to-door, had concluded on October 31, with an 89.48 per cent enumeration. About 4.22 lakh households had refused to participate in the survey. However, in order to provide an opportunity to those who could not participate in the survey due to various reasons, the period for participating online was extended till November 10. "In order to provide an opportunity to everyone to participate in the survey, the period for self-participation through the online link https://kscbcselfdeclaration.karnataka.gov.in, has finally been extended till November 30," the commission said in a release on Tuesday. About 6.13 crore of the 6.85 crore projected population
The ongoing Social and Educational Survey, nicknamed as 'caste survey', has so far covered 6,13,83,908 people in the state, Karnataka State Backward Classes Commission said on Friday. The brief summary shared by the Commission said that the projected population of Karnataka is 6,85,38,000 whereas the surveyed population as on October 31 was 6,13,83,908. The Commission said 4,22,258 households refused to take part in the survey while 34,49,681 houses were either vacant or locked. The survey, started on September 22, was supposed to conclude on October 7. The government extended the survey duration for another 10 days till October 18 due to incomplete survey work. It was further extended till October 31. The Commission has also decided to extend the survey for self-participation through online' till November 10 using the link https://kscbcselfdeclaration.karnataka.gov.in The department said that those who refused to participate in the survey, and those who were not available when th
The pre-test exercise for the first phase of Population Census 2027, which will include Houselisting and Housing census, shall be conducted in select sample areas in all the states and Union territories from November 10-30, 2025, a top official said on Friday. In a gazette notification, Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India, Mrityunjay Kumar Narayan, said an option for self-enumeration will also be available from November 1-7. The pre-test exercise tests the efficacy of the Census to be conducted between April 1, 2026, and February 28, 2027, in two phases -- Houselisting and Housing Schedule (HLO), and Population Enumeration. It will be the first digital census, which will also enumerate the caste of the citizens. During the test phase, all aspects of the mammoth exercise, ranging from questions, data collection, training, logistics, mobile application and software, will be evaluated to plug any issues in the process, officials said. In Phase-1, i.e., Houselisting ...
Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Friday said the technical issues affecting the Social and Educational Surveywidely referred to as the "caste census"have "almost been sorted out", and that the survey will now proceed in a full-fledged manner. He asserted that the survey would be completed within the stipulated period and stressed that there would be no extension. Concerns have been raised over the "slow pace of the survey", with technical glitches and server issues affecting data collection. Siddaramaiah chaired a video-conference meeting with ministers, senior officials, Backward Classes Commission Chairman Madhusudan R Naik, Deputy Commissioners (DCs), and Zilla Panchayat CEOs of all districts. The survey, being conducted by the Karnataka State Commission for Backward Classes, began on September 22 and is scheduled to continue until October 7. "The survey work started on September 22 and will be completed by October 7. There are some technical issues, all of which have t
The Karnataka government on Friday approved the conduct of a statewide Social and Educational Survey or cast census of all citizens between September 22 and October 7 2025. In its order, the government said, "In view of the details stated in the proposal, approval is accorded to the Karnataka State Backward Classes Commission to undertake a survey on the social and educational status of all citizens of the State from September 22, 2025 to October 7, 2025." The order notes that the Chairman of the Karnataka State Backward Classes Commission had earlier written to the government stating the intention to carry out the survey during the above period. "Deputy Commissioners and Chief Executive Officers of Zilla Panchayats have already been informed through video conference to organise the necessary training programmes at the district and taluk level for the enumerators and to create public awareness to ensure full participation in the survey," the order stated. The government clarified t
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Sunday claimed that the Modi government announced a caste census only under pressure and it would neither get a "true" caste census done nor remove the 50 per cent cap on reservations. He made the remarks at the launch of the Voter Adhikar Yatra that started from poll-bound Bihar's Sasaram and saw the participation of Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav, Leader of Opposition in Bihar Assembly Tejashwi Yadav, Vikassheel Insaan Party's Mukesh Sahani. CPI(ML) Liberation general secretary Dipankar Bhattacharya, CPI(M)'s Subhashini Ali and CPI's P Sandosh Kumar also joined the launch ceremony of Gandhi's 1,300 km-long yatra. "We had said in Parliament, that we want a caste census and that the wall of 50 per cent cap on reservation should be brought down. I said it before PM Modi. "But the BJP and Narendra Modi, under pressure, announced a caste census but I know that they will not conduct a true caste census and will never .
States can add 79 lakh more beneficiaries under the National Food Security Act that provides legal entitlement of foodgrains, the Centre said on Tuesday. The National Food Security Act (NFSA), which was passed by the Parliament in 2013, provides for coverage of up to 75 per cent of rural population and up to 50 per cent of urban population. This covers about two-thirds of the total population of the country, which comes to 81.35 crore based on Census 2011, the government said in a written reply to Rajya Sabha. "At present, against the intended coverage of 81.35 crore, the States/UTs have identified only 80.56 crore persons. Still, there is a scope of identification of 0.79 crore more beneficiaries under the NFSA," said Nimuben Jayantibhai Bambhaniya, Minister of State for Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution. She informed that Section 9 of the Act provides that the total number of persons to be covered in rural and urban areas of the State should be calculated on the basi
A special dedicated web portal will be launched for self-enumeration during the upcoming Census, which will be available for both phases of the national enumeration exercise, officials said Monday. In the country's first digital census, enumerators will collect the data of citizens using mobile applications on their Android and Apple phones, they said. It will also be the first time in the country that citizens will get a chance to self-enumerate through a dedicated web portal which will be available for both the phases of Census - Houselisting and Housing Census (HLO) and Population Enumeration. "Digital Census initiative is a transformational step towards modernising the Census process. For the first time, technology will be used to collect data and send it electronically to the central server. This will result in early availability of Census data," an official said. Very stringent data security measures would be kept in place to ensure data security at the time of collection, ..
The Centre has asked states and Union Territories to make any proposed changes in the boundaries of administrative units before December 31, when they will be considered final for the census exercise. In a letter to all states and Union Territories, Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India Mritunjay Kumar Narayan has said that for the Census, all villages and towns are divided into uniform enumeration blocks and for each block, an enumerator is assigned to avoid any miss or repetition during the population count. According to norms, the Census can be conducted only three months after the freezing of boundary limits of administrative units such as districts, sub-districts, tehsils, talukas and police stations. Narayan said from April 1, 2026, the Houselisting Operation, the appointment of supervisors and enumerators and the work division among them will be done, and on February 1, 2027, the Census of the population will begin. It is important that once enumeration blocks
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Friday expressed gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the announcement of the caste census and urged the people of the state to do the same. The JD(U) supremo was sharing the stage with the PM in Siwan district, where Modi launched 28 development projects worth over Rs 5,900 crore. "Ordering a caste census is a great thing that the Centre has done. I thank the Prime Minister for the same," said Kumar, and addressing the people, "you all may please express your gratitude towards him". The crowds erupted in applause, and chants in praise of the two leaders were heard. Notably, the caste census has been an issue close to the heart of Bihar's longest-serving chief minister, who had earlier got resolutions passed in its favour from both Houses of the state legislature. The BJP-JD(U) combine seeks to retain power in the assembly polls due in a few months, overcoming the challenge posed by the RJD, Congress, and Left combine, which has been .
Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday reviewed the preparation for the forthcoming census with Union Home Secretary Govind Mohan and other senior officials here. India's 16th census with caste enumeration will be carried out in 2027 with the reference date of October 1, 2026 in snow-bound areas like Ladakh and of March 1, 2027 in the rest of the country. The notification to conduct the census will be published in official gazette on Monday, an official statement said. The home minister reviewed the preparation for the forthcoming census with the Union home secretary, Registrar General & Census Commissioner of India Mritunjay Kumar Narayan and other senior officials here, it said. The census will be conducted in two phases. In phase one i.e. Houselisting Operation (HLO), the housing conditions, assets and amenities of each household will be collected. Subsequently, in second phase i.e. Population Enumeration (PE), the demographic, socio-economic, cultural and other details of every ...
The Karnataka cabinet will decide the timeline for the caste re-enumeration to be conducted in the state within 90 days, Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar said on Tuesday, promising a "transparent" process that protects the interests of all sections of society. He was speaking after the party announced the decision on the caste recount following a high-level meeting with Congress president Mallikarjuna Kharge and party leader Rahul Gandhi. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah was also among the leaders present during the deliberations. "Several ministers and communities have expressed apprehensions, and keeping this in mind, the party leadership has decided to re-enumerate castes in the state," Siddaramaiah told reporters. "We have agreed to that. The party has decided to complete the survey and submit the report within 90 days." Shivakumar, who is also the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president, emphasised that the census would be conducted transparently while taking all