Enumerator collecting details on a hand-held device to record the empirical data on sub-caste demographics in Anekal taluk of Bengaluru Urban district during the survey of the Scheduled Castes.
| Photo Credit: The Hindu
As the enumeration of Scheduled Caste (SC) households in Bengaluru has just touched about 51% of the projected households, covered over the last month and a half, several reasons are now being attributed to the poor coverage.The commission headed by retired judge H.N. Nagamohan Das, which is monitoring the survey — the results of which would determine the internal reservation among the 101 SCs in the State — is now exploring reasons for the poor response to even the online survey in the State capital. Less than 6,000 people have completed the online survey, even though the commission had expected at least about three lakh people to respond. On the other hand, the coverage across the State is 91%.Flaw in projection?“Several reasons are now being attributed to the poor coverage in Bengaluru. The projected population was calculated on the anticipated annual growth at the rate of 1.5%, which may not have happened. With the city mostly having nuclear families, the size of the family may have shrunk over the years,” a source involved in the discussion told The Hindu. He added that there could have been actual “reverse migration” from Bengaluru during the COVID-19 pandemic after job losses. This seems likely considering that several districts have reported a higher population than what has been estimated.While the estimated population of SCs in the erstwhile Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (now Greater Bengaluru Area) limits is 13.62 lakh, 6.88 lakh people have been enumerated so far in the survey that commenced on May 5. The survey is scheduled to end on June 30. Across the State, against an estimated population of 1.16 crore, the survey has so far covered 1.06 crore or about 91%.Apathy main cause?One of the biggest causes of worry has been apathy among the SC households in Bengaluru. The source said that apathy is seen particularly among the third or fourth generation beneficiaries of the reservation. The commission is also aware that many have not disclosed their identity in urban settlements due to fear of stigma or a fear of being asked to vacate the premises in case of rented accommodation.The survey, it is learnt, has been done well in about 700 slums in Bengaluru and settlements where the SC population is high in number. “The problem is in residential localities, extensions, and apartments where people are not forthcoming.”The commission, it is learnt, is also keeping migrant SCs from other States out of the purview of the survey since the SC list for each State differs. “Ultimately, a correct picture of population will emerge once the general Census is conducted,” said the source.Poor response for online surveyWhat has perplexed the H.N. Nagamohan Das Commission is a very poor response to the online survey. Though there have been about 22,100 logins for the online survey, only about 5,700 people completed it by last week. The commission is also planning to call up the participants whose survey is incomplete to ask them to complete it.Sources said the commission expected about three to four lakh people to take the online survey, especially in Bengaluru, where IT literacy is high. It provided convenience to those who did not wish to identify their caste. According to sources, there could also be technical problems. “Caste certificates older than a decade do not have the unique RD number, which is a must for the online survey. The response has been far less than the expected three to four lakh.” Published - June 22, 2025 03:32 pm IST
