Census 2027 Questionnaire Raises Doubts Over OBC Data Collection

A national symposium organised by the Party for the Rights of OBCs on Sunday raised concerns about the questionnaire for the upcoming Census 2027, particularly whether a caste census would be conducted alongside it.

Speaking to reporters, V. Rathna Sabhapathy, president of the party and a former TNPSC member, pointed out that the 12th question in the draft questionnaire lacks a provision to collect details of specific OBC communities. He noted that when the Mandal Commission was formed, there were around 3,000 OBC communities, and by the time of the Socio-Economic Caste Census (SECC) in 2011, thousands more had been listed.

Mr. Rathna Sabhapathy recalled that Union Minister Rajnath Singh stated in 2019 that a caste census would be conducted, but later the Supreme Court was informed it could not be undertaken. He expressed cautious optimism about the current government's commitment but stressed that the questionnaire must be designed to capture essential socio-economic data. 'Only if the socio-economic conditions of OBCs are known can we decide on appropriate reservations,' he said.

He further suggested that the questions should collect information on whether a person is OBC, which community they belong to, educational attainment in the family, and the number of family members in government service. Without such details, any reservation policy would lack empirical backing.

The symposium highlighted the need for a comprehensive caste census to address historical data gaps and ensure equitable policy-making. The issue is expected to be taken up with the central government and the Census Commissioner.