Ranchi: The Champai Soren-led government in Jharkhand has announced plans to conduct a caste census in the state. The decision was made on June 19 in a Cabinet meeting chaired by the chief minister. According to the state’s executive regulations, the Department of Personnel and Administrative Reforms has been entrusted with the responsibility of conducting the caste census.

Cabinet Secretary Vandana Dadal briefed the media about the development. She said the exercise aims to ensure equitable representation for Scheduled Castes (SC), Scheduled Tribes (ST) and Other Backward Classes (OBC) in the state.

However, specifics about the survey methodology and its commencement date has not been disclosed. The department concerned is expected to provide further details.

Jharkhand becomes the second state, following Bihar, to have a caste census. With Assembly elections scheduled later this year, this move by the Soren government holds significant political weight. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has consistently highlighted this issue during electoral campaigns.

Notably, ahead of the election, the state government has made substantial efforts to appeal to voters. Soren has announced an increase in the threshold of free electricity from 125 units to 200 units and pledged financial assistance for women aged 25 to 50. Additionally, the government plans to create 40,000 new government jobs within three months.

It is worth mentioning that Bihar has already conducted a caste census, albeit amid controversy. When Nitish Kumar formed a government with the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), a decision was made to conduct the census, despite Opposition claims of improper execution. However, there was no outright objection to the move from any party.