"If No Caste Census By Centre...": Nitish Kumar Hints At State-Level Plan

Nitish Kumar's letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on a caste-based Census is yet to elicit a response.

If the Central government does not hold a caste-based Census, then a discussion may be initiated on carrying out an exercise to enumerate caste data at the state level in Bihar, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar said today. He took the stance days after failing to elicit any response to a letter he wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the matter. Speaking to reporters in Patna today, Chief Minister Kumar reiterated the demand for a Census that takes into account India's caste variations, something the Bihar Assembly had unanimously passed a resolution on in 2019 and again in 2020. "It must be understood that the decision has to be taken by the Centre. We expressed our demand. This is nothing political, this is a social matter," Mr Kumar said.   When asked if the state would hold a similar exercise if the Centre doesn't, he said, "Then we will discuss it here, isn't it?"