Caste Census: The Bihar Survey and the National Debate

India last counted caste in detail in 1931. In 2023, one State broke that near-century silence. This lesson covers the Bihar caste survey, the national caste census debate it restarted, and the Census 2027 plan.

1Chapter 1: The Bihar Survey

Must Know

What happened

• The Bihar Caste-Based Survey began door-to-door data collection on 7 January 2023.
• Results came out on 2 October 2023.

What Bihar found

• OBCs were 27.12% of the State’s population.
• EBCs, the Extremely Backward Classes, were 36.01%.
• Together, OBCs and EBCs came to 63.13%.
• The “General” forward-caste category was 15.52%.
• SCs were about 20% and STs about 1.6%.
• Read more: Bihar.

The 1931 silence

• India last collected detailed caste data, beyond SCs and STs, in the 1931 census.
• So the gap ran nearly a century before Bihar broke it.

2Chapter 2: From Bihar to the Centre

Must Know

The Cabinet decision

• On 30 April 2025, the Union Cabinet approved including caste enumeration in the next national census.
• It followed Bihar’s results by roughly 18 months.
• Bihar’s numbers had built real political pressure.
• The government chose to count caste inside the main census, not as a separate exercise.
• This was meant to keep the count from becoming its own political flashpoint.
• The count now carries the same statutory weight as every other census question.
• A standalone survey would not have had the same legal and administrative authority.

A demand since Mandal

• States and parties have pushed for a national caste count since the Mandal Commission era of the late 1980s.
• Bihar acted on that demand at State level first, well before the Centre.
• Read more: V.P. Singh and the Mandal Commission Controversy.

Telangana’s own survey

• Telangana ran its Socio-Economic Caste Survey from November 2024 and released results on 3 February 2025.
• It found Backward Classes at 56.33% of the State’s population.
• (Source: Deccan Herald.)
• In March 2025, an 11-member panel led by retired Supreme Court judge Justice Sudarshan Reddy was set up to verify the data independently.
• (Source: AIR News.)

3Chapter 3: Why It Matters

Good to Know

Caste data and reservation

• Caste data feeds reservation policy. The framework depends on knowing which groups are under-represented, and by how much.
• Bihar’s numbers reopened the debate over the Supreme Court’s 50% cap on reservation.
• The Patna High Court struck down Bihar’s attempt in 2024 to raise its State quota to 65%. That shows the cap’s limits in practice.
• Congress has promised to remove the cap and hold a national caste survey. The fight is unresolved.
• Read more: Revisiting the 50% Cap on Reservation and EWS Reservation: The 103rd Constitutional Amendment.

Not the first time

• Caste enumeration was recommended and shelved before.
• The Kaka Kalelkar Commission’s 1955 recommendation for caste-wise census data went unimplemented for decades.
• Read more: The Kaka Kalelkar Commission.

Bihar as proof of concept

• One State ran and published caste data at scale.
• That helped shift the national government’s position within about 18 months.

4Chapter 4: Past Papers

Exam Point of View

Statutory or constitutional?

• Exams love asking whether a body is “statutory” or “constitutional”, and which amendment made it so.
• A statutory body is created by an ordinary law. A constitutional body needs a constitutional amendment, a much higher bar.
• For the NCBC, the answer is the 102nd Amendment, 2018. Memorise that number.

CAPF (ACs) 2026

• The question asked which Amendment Act matched which reform.
• The 102nd gave the NCBC constitutional status.
• The 103rd added EWS reservation. The 104th ended nominated Anglo-Indian seats. The 106th reserved 33% of seats for women.
• (Source: CAPF (ACs) 2026, Q42.)

CDS (I) 2026

• The question asked which statements about the NCBC are correct. The answer: statements 1 and 2 only.
• Statement 3 is the trap. A Chairperson heads the NCBC, not a ministry Secretary.
• (Source: CDS (I) 2026, Q102.)

CDS (II) 2024

• The question asked about the first All India Census. Both statements turned out correct.
• The 1872 census was a real first attempt, just not synchronous.
• The regular ten-year cycle only began in 1881.
• (Source: CDS (II) 2024, Q67.)

5Chapter 5: Census 2027 Schedule

Current Affairs

The plan

• House-listing runs from April to September 2026.
• Population enumeration, including caste data, follows in February 2027.
• An earlier September 2026 round covers snow-bound areas like Ladakh and parts of Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand.
• This will be India’s first fully digital census.
• (Source: AIR News.)
• Read more: Census 2027.

Quick Q&A

• Last caste count? 1931.
• Bihar OBC + EBC? 63.13%.
• Cabinet approval? 30 April 2025.
• NCBC amendment? 102nd, 2018.
• Census cycle began? 1881.