Archive · 21 Aug 2026
OBC Groups Seek Census 2027 Delay Over Caste Coding
Some OBC organisations want the caste count in Census 2027 to be delayed.
They say people may write the same caste name in different ways.
Different names, spellings and sub-castes could then be counted as separate groups.
This could make the final information confusing.
Yogendra Yadav said the data should be reliable and easy to use.
The organisations want special codes for caste names and their variations.
They also want a way to add missing communities and check entries.
They plan to protest in New Delhi and are asking for experts to help design the system.
OBC organisations demanded postponement of caste enumeration in Census 2027.
They said an open caste column could create inconsistent and unusable data.
Yogendra Yadav called for standardised coding covering names, synonyms and regional variations.
The groups compared their demand with recognised systems used for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.
The organisations plan to protest in New Delhi and seek an expert committee before enumeration begins.
- Who
- The BC Intellectuals Forum, All India OBC Students Association and other OBC organisations, with Prof. Yogendra Yadav attending the interaction.
- What
- They demanded that OBC caste enumeration under Census 2027 be postponed until standardised caste codes are finalised.
- When
- The demand was made on Friday; the proposed enumeration is part of Census 2027.
- Where
- The press meet took place in Hyderabad, while the organisations said they would protest in New Delhi.
- Why
- They said an open caste column could produce inconsistent entries and unreliable data for social justice, representation, reservations and policymaking.
- Main demand
- Postpone OBC caste enumeration until standardised codes are finalised.
- Organisations involved
- BC Intellectuals Forum, All India OBC Students Association and other OBC organisations.
- Census concerned
- Census 2027.
- Main concern
- Different spellings, synonyms, regional names and sub-castes could be recorded separately.
- Requested codes
- Codes for recognised caste names, synonyms, alternative names and regional variations.
- Additional safeguards
- Provisions for omitted communities and verification of entries.
- Further proposal
- A committee of OBC scholars, sociologists, statisticians, administrators and OBC organisation representatives.