Census in India

About:

• Population Censusis the total process ofcollecting, compiling, analyzinganddisseminating demographic, economic and social datapertaining, at a specific time, of all persons in a country or a well-defined part of a country.
• It alsoprovides the trends in populationcharacteristics.
• TheIndian Census is one of the largest administrative exercisesundertaken in the world.

Nodal Ministry:

• The decennial Census is conducted by theOffice of the Registrar General and Census Commissioner, Ministry of Home Affairs.
• Until 1951, the Census Organisation was set up on anad-hoc basisfor each Census.

Legal/Constitutional Backing:

• Census is conducted under the provisions of theCensus Act, 1948.
• The bill for this Act was piloted bySardar Vallabhbhai Patel, the then Home Minister of India.
• The population census is aUnion subject under Article 246of India Constitution.
• Itis listed atserial number 69of theseventh scheduleof the constitution.

Confidentiality of Information:

• The information collected during the population Census is so confidential that it isnot even accessible to the courts of law.
• The confidentiality is guaranteed by theCensus Act, 1948.The law specifies penalties for both public and census officials for non-compliance or violation of any provision of the Act.

Significance:

The Indian Census is the largest single source of a variety of statistical information on different characteristics of the people of India.

Researchers and Demographers use census data to analyze growth and trends of population and make projections.

Good Governance: The data collected through the census is used for administration, planning and policy making as well as management and evaluation of various programmes by the Government.

Demarcation: Census data is also used for demarcation of constituencies and allocation of representation to Parliament, State legislative assemblies and the local bodies.

Giving Grants: Finance Commission provides grants to the states on the basis of population figures available from the Census data.

History of Census

Ancient and Medieval Period:

• Rigveda:The earliest literature 'Rig-Veda' reveals that some kind of population count wasmaintained during 800-600 BCin India.
• Arthashastra:'Arthashastra'by 'Kautilya'written in the 3^rdCentury BC prescribed the collection ofpopulation statistics as a measure of state policy for taxation.
• Ain-i-Akbari:During the regime of the Mughal kingAkbar,the administrative report'Ain-e-Akbari'alsoincluded comprehensive data pertaining to population,industry, wealth and many other characteristics.

Pre-independence Period:

• Initial Attempts:
• The history of the census began with 1800 when England had begun its Census.
• In its continuation, a census was conducted inAllahabad(1824) and inBanaras(1827-28) byJames Prinsep.
• The first complete census of an Indian city was conducted in1830byHenry Walter in Dacca(now Dhaka).
• The Second Census was conducted in 1836-37 byFort St. George.
• In 1849, the Government of India ordered the local governments to conductquinquennial(five-yearly) returns of population.
• First Non-synchronous Census:It was conducted in India in 1872 during the reign ofGovernor-General Lord Mayo.
• First Synchronous Census:The first synchronous census was taken under British rule on February 17, 1881, byW.C. Plowden(Census Commissioner of India).
• Since then, censuses have been undertakenuninterruptedlyonce every ten years.

Socio-Economic and Caste Census (SECC)

About:

The Socio-Economic and Caste Census (SECC) was conducted in 2011 for the first time since 1931.

It seeks to canvass every Indian family in rural and urban India, and ask about their:

1Economic status, to allow Central/State authorities to come up with a range of indicators of deprivation which could be used by each authority to define a poor or deprived person.

2Specific caste name, to allow the government to re-evaluate which caste groups are economically worse off and which are better off.

Difference Between Census & SECC:

Field of Coverage: The Census provides a portrait of the Indian population while the SECC is a tool to identify beneficiaries of state support.

Confidentiality of Data: The Census data is considered confidential, whereas the data of SECC is open for use by Government departments to grant and/or restrict benefits to the people.

Significance of SECC:

Better Mapping of Inequalities: SECC has the potential to allow for a mapping of inequalities at a broader level.

It will be useful to establish statistical justification for preserving caste-based affirmative action programmes or welfare schemes.

Legally Imperative: It is also legally imperative as the courts require a ‘quantifiable data’ to support the existing levels of reservation.

Constitutional Mandate: The Constitution of India also favours conducting a caste census.

Article 340 mandates the appointment of a commission to investigate the conditions of socially and educationally backward classes and make recommendations as to the steps that should be taken by governments.