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Okahyderabadi Comedian Username: Okahyderabadi Post Number: 1987 Registered: 12-2009 Posted From: 209.97.203.60 Rating: N/A |
i think it is not mandatory to reveal caste In history there is no such thing as the last word on any subject research leads to new things every day | ||
Ashton Side Hero Username: Ashton Post Number: 6389 Registered: 05-2008 Posted From: 66.90.104.94 Rating: N/A |
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000142405274870396000457548 1690129581902.html?mod=WSJ_hpp_LEFTTopStories NEW DELHI—The Indian government decided to poll all of its citizens on their caste for the first time in 80 years in a major policy shift on the controversial issue. Caste—in effect a person's standing in the hierarchy of Hinduism—continues to define many aspects of Indian society, such as marriage and appealing to voters especially in rural areas. Yet, amid a growing and modernizing economy and a young population, caste's significance has waned, and the government since independence in 1947 has resisted emphasizing caste for fear of creating divisions and tensions between the various caste levels. The Indian Constitution bans discrimination on the basis of race and caste. The Indian government didn't provide a specific rationale for polling people on their caste—nor did it specifically say it would poll people of other religions such as Christians or Muslims. But supporters of the move say it will help the government better target welfare programs and other services aimed at those in the lower castes, who tend to also be on the lower rungs of the socioeconomic ladder. Though it hasn't polled for all castes, India does count those on the lowest rung—known as Dalits—for special programs and quotas in government jobs and education. Those programs have been expanded over the years, and gaining an updated look at the caste population could lead to a more-efficient provision of services. Critics fear, however, that defining the caste population could exacerbate intercaste tensions and discrimination. In a statement announcing its decision, the cabinet of the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said the caste "of all persons as returned by them would be canvassed" in a special census in mid-2011. India's Office of the Registrar General and Census Commissioner will first measure people on their caste and tribes and the information then will be classified by an expert group that the Indian government would form at a later date, the government said. The last time a full caste census was conducted was under British rule in 1931. The government acknowledged it was changing a practice that "had been given up as a matter of policy after independence." It said it made the move "in response to the demands for enumerating castes." India's regular decennial census started in April and will conclude in March 2011. The government currently reserves 22.5% of all jobs in its offices and seats in government colleges and universities for Dalits and students from India's indigenous tribes, who also receive special benefits under the constitution. The percentage is based on 1961 census data. In the early 1990s, the government decided to put aside a further 27% of government jobs for people socially and economically marginalized due to the caste system, known in demographic parlance as "other backward classes." That policy concession was forced by the political momentum built on the claim that these groups constituted 52% of India's total population based on the 1931 census data. That government move met with number of violent protests around the country mainly by upper caste youths who saw it as limiting their career prospects. Though often attributed to Hinduism's classification of people into four categories according to their work and religious duties, the caste distinctions in India have spilled over to converts to other religions, too, so it isn't uncommon to find someone defining himself as a Dalit Christian. In a debate in Parliament in May, parties across the political spectrum united in the view that caste should be included in the continuing census to bring clarity to the government's affirmative-action policies and make them more reflective of the social and economic backwardness that persists due to the caste system. Bhakta Charan Das, a Congress party member in the lower house and the only member during the May Parliament debate to strongly oppose the inclusion of caste in the census, said the government decision on the caste census comes at a time when the country should have "legally abolished the caste system." Mr. Das added that "it's time to abolish the caste system and let the Indian nation live in dignity." Mr. Das, who represents a constituency from the eastern Indian state of Orissa, says he is a Dalit himself and "the caste census will disturb the peace and progress in India's villages where people were slowly coming out of the caste prison and over 70% of India's youth whose liberal minds will now get imprisoned in the petty caste issues." Write to Krishna Pokharel at krishna.pokharel@wsj.com My new blog |