Firdous Ahmad Sofal, Waheed Ahmad Ahanger
Census
provides us with very detailed information related to the demographic picture,
economic activities and literacy status of the country. Apart from this, it is
most credible source of information on different social groups (Scheduled
Castes and Scheduled Tribes) of the county and their progression in different
fields. In order to frame and implement different programs and policies, census
data is very important for socio-economic research and planning for central and
the state governments. The literacy figures from 1961 to 2011 available on
Census Bureau of India for SCs & STs social groups on decade bases. After
India became independent the practice to collect the data for different social
groups were restricted to SCs/STs and OBCs where always excluded from the
census. Literacy is the key for social-economic development of the
country. An attempt has been made to
justify the significance of Census for the development of the Indian nation in
relation to various aspects like economy, education, housing etc. In the
present paper an attempt has been made at micro level to study literacy rates
among different marginalized social groups with special reference to OBCs of
North-Kashmir. The researchers used the literacy figures 2011 available on
Census Bureau of India and tried to answer why census is important for OBCs. The
researcher adopted House-Hold survey of various areas where OBCs are dominated
in residing in terms of their castes and professions. The investigator
identified 03 dominated villages in 03 Districts of North-Kashmir in India. The
findings of the study confirmed that there is a need to inclusion of the OBCs
in the census across states of India, so that a clear picture of their
progression will come in front of the nation.
Census, SCs, STs, OBCs and North-Kashmir
VOL.14, ISSUE No.1, March 2022