The Union cabinet has announced that the next population Census will also include questions on caste. This is a sharp departure from the ruling BJP’s long-standing opposition to a caste census.

How do we understand this U-turn? How would this caste census differ from the last one, conducted in 1931? Given the massive scale and logistics involved, what are the challenges involved, and how do we ensure the integrity of the exercise and the data collection process?

Edited by Sharmada Venkatasubramian

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