At an all-party meeting convened by the Centre ahead of the Budget Session of Parliament in New Delhi on Monday, the YSR Congress demanded a nationwide caste-based economic census, having earlier adopted a resolution to make the same demand for an enumeration of the Backward Classes (BCs) in the state, in November 2021. “We reiterated our demand for a caste-based census. YSR Congress demands caste-based economic census to know the status of BCs, who have been left behind on social and developmental indicators,” said YSRCP Rajya Sabha MP V Vijaysai Reddy. Reddy also claimed that BCs are over 50 per cent of India's total population, and the census would help identify their economic status. The ruling party in Andhra Pradesh has joined the likes of the JD(U) and the RJD, both of which have demanded a caste-based census. On October 8, 2021, the Andhra Pradesh Assembly had passed a resolution seeking a caste-based census for BCs. The resolution was moved by the state's Backward Classes Welfare Minister C S Venugopala Krishna, who claimed that many BC castes have not been recognised. Supporting the resolution, CM Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy had described the BCs as the backbone of Indian society, and said that a caste census among BCs to assess their status was the need of the hour, and would be beneficial for the overall development of BCs, because the government can then chalk out welfare measures according to their status, especially in employment, education and welfare sectors. He had then said that the government was still relying on data collected over 50 years ago, and that it was time for a fresh caste-based census for the social and economic upliftment of the BCs. A similar resolution was passed by the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (formerly TRS) government in Telangana on October 9, 2021. The YSRCP's support for a caste-based census is expected to help the party which has the backing of many BCs in the state, who earlier used to support the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) but voted for welfare schemes promised by Jagan Reddy during his padyatra, before he stormed to power in May 2019. The Jagan government has established 56 corporations for the state's 139 BC communities, and established the first permanent BC commission in the country. The TDP, now trying aggressively to woo the BCs back to its fold, also supports a caste-based census. In October 2021, TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu wrote a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi saying that such a census was essential for the welfare and progress of the community. Between May 2019, when it came to power, and December 2022, the YSRCP government disbursed Rs 1,63,000 crore for BC communities, using both direct benefit transfer (DBT) and non-DBT routes. In DBT alone, Rs 86,000 crore has been distributed among the people. The Jagan government has also nominated four people from the BC communities to the Rajya Sabha and 18 to the state Legislative Council. The Assembly speaker is from a BC community, the Legislative Council chairman is an SC, and his deputy is from a minority community. Eleven BC MLAs have been made ministers, taking the combined strength of BCs, SCs, STs and minorities in the Cabinet to 70 per cent. Even at the grassroots level, out of the state's 648 local bodies, the YSRCP, which won 635, has distributed 239 (38 per cent) Mandal Praja Parishad President posts among the BCs.
