HYDERABAD: Telangana BC Welfare Minister Ponnam Prabhakar introduced a resolution to conduct a caste-wise census in the State Legislative Assembly on Friday.
The debate is going on in the House at present and the resolution is likely to be adopted unanimously, as the Opposition BRS too backed the resolution.
"That this House resolves to take up a comprehensive door-to-door household survey (Socio, Educational, Economic, Employment, Political and caste survey (Kulaganana) of the entire Telangana state, to plan and implement various socio, economic, educational, employment and political opportunities for the amelioration of socially and educationally Backward Classes of citizens and Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes, mandated under clause (4) and (5) of Article 15, Clause (4) of Article 16, Article 38, Article 39, Clause (6) of Article 243 D and Clause (6) of Article 243 T of Constitution of India", the resolution said.
Speaking on the resolution, Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy requested all the members to give their suggestions on conducting the caste census.
Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka said, "As per the promise given in the election, we are doing caste enumeration." The caste census would be like a foundation stone for the development of Backward Classes, he added.
BRS member K Srihari asserted that they were welcoming the decisions. "Instead of the caste census, the resolution should have mentioned the 'BC census'. The word 'caste census' was confusing," Srihari further said.
Replying to Srihari, Vikramarka said that there was no confusion and the census would be helpful to all.