- Prelims: Census, Total Fertility Rate (TFR), National Register of Citizens (NRC) etc
- Mains GS Paper I and II: Government policies and interventions for development of various sectors and issues arising out of them etc
ARTICLE HIGHLIGHTS
- The best uses of a census happened in the United States when, in 1850 and 1860, anti-slavery campaigners used numbers from two consecutive national censuses to build support for the abolition of slavery.
INSIGHTS ON THE ISSUE
Context
Census:
- The census provides information on size, distribution and socio-economic, demographic and other characteristics of the country’s population.
- The Census was first started under British Viceroy Lord Mayo in 1872.
- It helped in framing new policies, government programs to uplift areas of improvement in the community.
- The first synchronous census in India was held in 1881.
- Since then, censuses have been undertaken uninterruptedly once every ten years.
Who conducts the census?
- The responsibility of conducting the decennial Census rests with the Office of the Registrar General and Census Commissioner, India under the Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India.
The Census is one of the most credible sources of information on the following:
- Economic Activity.
- Literacy and Education.
- Housing & Household Amenities.
- Urbanization, Fertility, and Mortality.
- Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.
Census in India:
- India’s first Census was held in 1872, conducted non-synchronously in different parts of the country.
- After that, India has held its decadal censuses regularly from 1881 to 2011.
Importance of Census:
- Counting: It carries the promise of counting each and every Indian.
- Connecting state to individual: A census is when the state connects to every individual and it will find it hard to hide or duck from the data.
- Findings: Finding out age, gender, economic status, religion and languages spoken yields information of another order
- Planning and resolving problems: It is a treasure trove of findings and providing pathways for planning and resolving problems, and fixing deficiencies.
- Before Big Data: Well before the term Big Data became commonplace — have provided great amounts of reliable numbers over time.
- Important metrics: such as the sharp decline in the gender ratio(between the Censuses of 1961 and 1971) alerted Indians to how pre and post-natal factors were reflecting the ‘son bias’ and leading people to murder girls, born and unborn.
- Preventing bigotry and prejudice: Considering the data-free assertion that India is heading for a population explosion due to Muslim reproductive rates.
Census and TFR:
- Decrease in TFR: The Census established that the Total Fertility Rate (TFR) is coming down at a very rapid pace and is well on its way to stabilization.
- TFR in Muslims: The fall in TFR among Muslims is faster than in any community.
- Region and socio-economic indicators: The differences in TFR across India have more to do with region and socio-economic indicators, and not religion or caste.
Notion of divorce rates(The 2011 Census):
- The urban divorce rate (89(zero point eight nine)%) is almost equal to the rural rate (0.82(zero point eight two%)
Contentious issues:
- Gateway for NRC: The turning of the Census into a gateway for a nation-wide, contentious National Register of Citizens (NRC) opposed by a large population.
- Resolutions by state assemblies: Large sections of the citizenry are insecure about their ability to provide the right paperwork.
- Several State Assemblies issued resolutions that they would not conduct NRC.
- Identities: The Census has often been key to the formation and affirmation of identities over time.
- Electoral rolls to be linked with Aadhaar: It may not be compulsory but it potentially allows very sensitive data of citizens to be available to the state.
- The Ministry of Home Affairs: It has just notified the Criminal Procedure (Identification) Rules, 2022, even as two High courts are hearing the challenge to the Act.
- The missing Census: It is accompanied by an extensive desire to mine the data of citizens, not in a way that offers them any benefits or security, but their relationship with the government is more asymmetrical.
Way Forward
- Repository of complete data: The census is vital and precious as it is a repository of complete data about the country which is gathered openly, voluntarily, and with the use of public money, making it a social good
- Desire to connect: Fundamentally, it is a way in which the state, by knocking at all doors, displays its desire to connect with the people who ultimately comprise the nation.
QUESTION FOR PRACTICE
- Discuss the main objectives of Population Education and point out the measures to achieve them in India in detail.(UPSC 2021)
(200 WORDS, 10 MARKS)
