Bengaluru: Presentation of a final report of the social, economic and caste census being undertaken at a whopping cost of Rs 180 crore, is likely to be delayed further due to non-availability of details of scores of families.
Admitting this, Social Welfare Minister H. Anjaneya told Deccan Chronicle that a meeting of senior officials of his department has been convened on May 26 to know the status of the report following delay in getting the details from several districts and more importantly Bengaluru city. Only after the meeting will it be possible to say when the much-awaited caste census report will be ready for release.
The minister said according to his information, the enumerators have not covered several thousands of houses in Bengaluru city, where nearly one crore people reside, during the house-to-house visit. While the gated community residents did not allow enumerators to enter their premises, several thousand houses were found locked during the visit.
The meeting on May 26 will decide the further course of action as the report will be 'incomplete' if all the families are not contacted and details obtained. Details available from some districts has been computed and officials are waiting for details from other districts where officials seem to be busy in drought relief works.
The caste census, is billed as an ambitious plan of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to understand the social and economic status of families and more importantly, the population of all castes. The last census was done in 1933 and since then, no government had attempted this mammoth exercise anticipating stiff opposition from various communities. Over a lakh enumerators were engaged in this task but unfortunately, the coverage of this census was not cent per cent in Bengaluru city despite extending deadline several times.
The task of this census, was entrusted to the Karnataka State Backward Classes Commission, under whose supervision the entire exercise took place. While the CM claimed that the census was aimed at helping socially and economically weaker families irrespective of their caste or community, leaders of majority Lingayat and Vokkaliga communities termed it as deliberate to further divide society on caste lines.
