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Government Clarifies Reports on Caste Enumeration in Census 2027
PIB further clarified in another post on X: “The Government has already announced that Caste enumeration will take place alongside Census 2027. For more details, visit: https://pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2136515.”
In a related update, Union Home Minister Amit Shah convened a meeting on June 15 to assess preparations for the upcoming Census. This included discussions with the Union Home Secretary, the Registrar General, and the Census Commissioner of India, along with other senior officials in New Delhi. The official gazette published the notification to conduct the Census on Monday.
The Census will unfold in two phases:
– In Phase One, known as the Houselisting Operation (HLO), information regarding housing conditions, assets, and amenities of each household will be gathered.
– Phase Two, or Population Enumeration (PE), will focus on collecting demographic, socio-economic, cultural, and other pertinent details of each person in every household. Caste enumeration will also be included in this process.
Approximately 34 lakh enumerators and supervisors, along with around 1.3 lakh Census functionaries, will be deployed for this Census, marking the 16th since it began and the eighth since Independence. The upcoming Census will utilize digital methods, employing mobile applications for data collection and providing a provision for self-enumeration to the public. Stringent data security measures will be implemented to safeguard data during collection, transmission, and storage.
Previously, the Union Home Ministry had addressed and fact-checked this misleading information. The Ministry responded to concerns raised by Congress, which contended that the gazette notification issued on Monday did not clarify the inclusion of caste in the Census, questioning if this was yet another “U-turn” by the Central government.
The gazette notification affirmed that the Census would indeed include caste enumeration. Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh further insisted that the Centre should adopt the Telangana model not only for caste enumeration but also for detailed socio-economic data collection based on caste.
The Census will utilize a reference date of October 1, 2026, for snow-bound areas like Ladakh, and March 1, 2027, for the rest of the country. This will be the first caste-based enumeration since Independence, following the last comprehensive caste count conducted by the British between 1881 and 1931. Caste has been excluded from Indian census operations since Independence, but the recent decision to include it was made by the Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on April 30.
New Delhi: An 18-year-old MBBS student has accused a 20-year-old male friend of drugging and sexually assaulting her at a hotel in Delhi’s Adarsh Nagar area. The alleged incident took place on September 9, police officials said.
According to the complaint, the accused, who is also a medical student, invited the woman to “Hotel Apple” on the pretext of spending time together. Once there, he allegedly gave her a drink laced with drugs and then raped her.
The survivor told police that the accused recorded obscene videos and took pictures during the assault. He later threatened to make the content viral if she reported the incident.
The woman, a native of Jind in Haryana, is currently staying at the hostel of Baba Saheb Ambedkar Medical College in Rohini, Delhi.
Based on her complaint, police have registered a case under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code. A search is underway to locate and arrest the accused, officials added.
In a separate case earlier this month, a school manager in Uttar Pradesh was arrested for allegedly raping a Class 8 student. In February, a tuition teacher in Delhi’s CR Park area was accused of repeatedly raping a 15-year-old student over three years and threatening her with blackmail.
Jaipur: Eight patients died after a fire broke out at the trauma centre of the state-run Sawai Man Singh (SMS) Hospital in Jaipur late Sunday night.
Officials said the blaze started in the storage area of the Neuro ICU, possibly due to a short circuit. There were 11 patients in the ICU at the time. Smoke quickly spread, causing panic among patients and staff.
Hospital workers and attendants tried to rescue patients, even moving them out on their beds. Firefighters controlled the blaze in about two hours.
Families of the victims alleged that hospital staff ignored early warnings about smoke and fled during the fire.
Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma and other ministers visited the hospital to review the situation and assured a detailed probe into the incident.
Uttar Pradesh: A 75-year-old man who remarried in search of companionship died barely hours after his wedding, sparking shock and speculation in his village.
The deceased, identified as Sangruram, a resident of Kuchhmuchh village in Jaunpur district, had been living alone after losing his first wife a year ago. With no children, he supported himself through farming. Despite advice from relatives against remarriage, Sangruram wed 35-year-old Manbhavati, a resident of Jalalpur area, on Monday, September 29.
The marriage was first registered in court, followed by traditional rituals at a local temple. According to Manbhavati, the couple spent most of the wedding night conversing, as Sangruram assured her that she would take responsibility for the household while he would “take care of the children.”
However, by the next morning, his health deteriorated suddenly. He was rushed to hospital, where doctors declared him dead.
The unexpected death has triggered varied reactions in the village. While some residents believe it to be a natural occurrence given his age, others have expressed suspicion about the circumstances.
Relatives, including nephews residing in Delhi, have halted funeral rites until their arrival. They have also raised questions about whether a police inquiry or post-mortem examination will be conducted before the cremation.
Authorities have yet to issue an official statement regarding further investigation.
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