Data Source for Religious and Caste Groups in India
S. Venkatesan (OneWorld South Asia)
New Delhi March 7 2006: Religion and Caste is inextricably intertwined with every aspect of life in India. The Hinduism is the largest religion, which is described as majority and followed by the Muslims, Christians and others including Buddhists, Jains and Sikhs, which are described as minorities. The Hindu Religion has further divided into different social groups viz. the Scheduled Caste, (SCs), the Scheduled Tribes (STs), the Other Backward Classes (OBCs) and Others. According to 2001 Census, the Hindus constitute about 80.5% and within it the SCs representing 16.2 per cent, the STs account for 8.2 per cent of the country’s total population. In the absence of specific Census data, it is not possible to quote the exact figure for the OBCs. However, the Mandal Commission made a rough estimate of OBCs constituting 50 per cent of the country’s total population but NFHS and NSS estimates roughly about 37-40%. The minorities, who constitute 19.5%, represent Muslims about 13.4 per cent, Christians 2.3 per cent, Sikhs 1.8 per cent, Buddhists 0.8 per cent and Jains 0.4 and others 0.7 per cent to total population in India.
The Constitution of India guarantees social, economic and political provisions for protection and promotion of interest of these socially disadvantaged groups (SCs and STs), the OBCs and the Minorities. Recognising the guarantees of the Constitution, the Government made special concern and commitment through a number of affirmative action programmes – like the constitutionally guaranteed reservations in the legislatures, government jobs, educational institutions, and the administratively determined preferential access in poverty alleviation programmes etc. – which have sought to ameliorate their living conditions. But as is widely recognised by now there is hardly any improvement in their lot in the post-Independence period. So, the need to conduct in-depth studies on these Groups, which have passed through the processes of welfare and development during the past five developmental decades, appears as important, and urgent, as ever.
Unfortunately, there was no such awareness, even on the part of the state, to generate the information about the socio-economic conditions of the members of each religious and social group, in each State, by gender and by place of residence (rural and urban). This is consistent with the refusal to collect information on a caste basis. Differences according to religion and caste simply do not exist then. Just as unforgivable is the unwillingness of the Indian academic community to explore these issues in detail, especially at a time when created facts about the majority and minority religious communities are commonly used in political discourse. The only exceptions are attempts to study the demographic behaviour of religious groups (Census Reports). Social science researchers have been irresponsible by refusing to study where the members of India's many religious groups stand in a variety of social and economic indicators. There has been some change recently. In 1992-23 a team of institutes under the guidance of IIPS published the result of its National Family Health Survey for demographic, health and nutrition aspects of different religious and social groups. In 1999, another sources of database of this kind by a team of researchers at the National Council of Applied Economic Research, led by Abusaleh Shariff, published the results of a nationwide survey of 33,000 households. This study (India: Human Development Report) collated information according to socio-economic status, caste — and religion. But what is more remarkable is that the National Sample Survey Organisation, an autonomous Government agency, has compiled and published the socio-economic data according to religion that it collected data for few indicators during the course of its national surveys of consumption expenditure during 1987-88 and many more during the 50th and 55th rounds of 1993-94 and 1999-2000.
In case of caste groups there has now been a long enough method of data collection at household level, its analysis in terms of poverty measurement, most notably typified by the nationally representative sample surveys undertaken and statistical analysis and documents published. This was the first time in NSSO history the data on levels and patterns of consumer expenditure by social groups (SCs/STs&ALL) published during 1983 (38th round), 1987-88 (43rd round), 1993-94 (50th round) and recent 1999-00 (55th round).
1. The demographic profile of different caste and religious groups and changes over period etc can be analysed at the district level for urban and rural using the Census data.
2. Again using Census data and other sources like NSSO, NFHS one can study the occupation, educational achievements and literacy level of different caste and religious groups at state level as well as district level for urban/rural wise.
3. To study the socio-economic conditions of the each castes and religious, and contrast this picture with that for the rest of the population. Such as exercise for aspects like poverty (income or consumption expenditure base), etc may be analysed at the state level for urban and rural wise (using NSSO data).
4. To study changes, if any, in the socio-economic conditions of each caste and religious groups with respect to occupation, ownership pattern, work participation rate, employment and unemployment rate for rural/urban wise etc may be possible using NSSO’s different round data).
5. To study the health and family welfare of the each caste and religious groups with respect to fertility, infant and child mortality, the practice of family planning, maternal and child health care and utilization of health care services, morbidity levels and nutrition levels of children etc can be possible to analyse at the state level for urban and rural wise (using NFHS data sets I and II).
More on data source click here…
New Delhi March 7 2006: Religion and Caste is inextricably intertwined with every aspect of life in India. The Hinduism is the largest religion, which is described as majority and followed by the Muslims, Christians and others including Buddhists, Jains and Sikhs, which are described as minorities. The Hindu Religion has further divided into different social groups viz. the Scheduled Caste, (SCs), the Scheduled Tribes (STs), the Other Backward Classes (OBCs) and Others. According to 2001 Census, the Hindus constitute about 80.5% and within it the SCs representing 16.2 per cent, the STs account for 8.2 per cent of the country’s total population. In the absence of specific Census data, it is not possible to quote the exact figure for the OBCs. However, the Mandal Commission made a rough estimate of OBCs constituting 50 per cent of the country’s total population but NFHS and NSS estimates roughly about 37-40%. The minorities, who constitute 19.5%, represent Muslims about 13.4 per cent, Christians 2.3 per cent, Sikhs 1.8 per cent, Buddhists 0.8 per cent and Jains 0.4 and others 0.7 per cent to total population in India.
The Constitution of India guarantees social, economic and political provisions for protection and promotion of interest of these socially disadvantaged groups (SCs and STs), the OBCs and the Minorities. Recognising the guarantees of the Constitution, the Government made special concern and commitment through a number of affirmative action programmes – like the constitutionally guaranteed reservations in the legislatures, government jobs, educational institutions, and the administratively determined preferential access in poverty alleviation programmes etc. – which have sought to ameliorate their living conditions. But as is widely recognised by now there is hardly any improvement in their lot in the post-Independence period. So, the need to conduct in-depth studies on these Groups, which have passed through the processes of welfare and development during the past five developmental decades, appears as important, and urgent, as ever.
Unfortunately, there was no such awareness, even on the part of the state, to generate the information about the socio-economic conditions of the members of each religious and social group, in each State, by gender and by place of residence (rural and urban). This is consistent with the refusal to collect information on a caste basis. Differences according to religion and caste simply do not exist then. Just as unforgivable is the unwillingness of the Indian academic community to explore these issues in detail, especially at a time when created facts about the majority and minority religious communities are commonly used in political discourse. The only exceptions are attempts to study the demographic behaviour of religious groups (Census Reports). Social science researchers have been irresponsible by refusing to study where the members of India's many religious groups stand in a variety of social and economic indicators. There has been some change recently. In 1992-23 a team of institutes under the guidance of IIPS published the result of its National Family Health Survey for demographic, health and nutrition aspects of different religious and social groups. In 1999, another sources of database of this kind by a team of researchers at the National Council of Applied Economic Research, led by Abusaleh Shariff, published the results of a nationwide survey of 33,000 households. This study (India: Human Development Report) collated information according to socio-economic status, caste — and religion. But what is more remarkable is that the National Sample Survey Organisation, an autonomous Government agency, has compiled and published the socio-economic data according to religion that it collected data for few indicators during the course of its national surveys of consumption expenditure during 1987-88 and many more during the 50th and 55th rounds of 1993-94 and 1999-2000.
In case of caste groups there has now been a long enough method of data collection at household level, its analysis in terms of poverty measurement, most notably typified by the nationally representative sample surveys undertaken and statistical analysis and documents published. This was the first time in NSSO history the data on levels and patterns of consumer expenditure by social groups (SCs/STs&ALL) published during 1983 (38th round), 1987-88 (43rd round), 1993-94 (50th round) and recent 1999-00 (55th round).
1. The demographic profile of different caste and religious groups and changes over period etc can be analysed at the district level for urban and rural using the Census data.
2. Again using Census data and other sources like NSSO, NFHS one can study the occupation, educational achievements and literacy level of different caste and religious groups at state level as well as district level for urban/rural wise.
3. To study the socio-economic conditions of the each castes and religious, and contrast this picture with that for the rest of the population. Such as exercise for aspects like poverty (income or consumption expenditure base), etc may be analysed at the state level for urban and rural wise (using NSSO data).
4. To study changes, if any, in the socio-economic conditions of each caste and religious groups with respect to occupation, ownership pattern, work participation rate, employment and unemployment rate for rural/urban wise etc may be possible using NSSO’s different round data).
5. To study the health and family welfare of the each caste and religious groups with respect to fertility, infant and child mortality, the practice of family planning, maternal and child health care and utilization of health care services, morbidity levels and nutrition levels of children etc can be possible to analyse at the state level for urban and rural wise (using NFHS data sets I and II).
More on data source click here…