Bihar: Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Wednesday again voiced the demand for a caste-based census. During a press conference he said it will help understand the caste-demographic of the country. According to ANI, he told the press "I have been demanding a caste-based census for very long. Not just me, I have sent the proposal to the Centre multiple times after getting it approved by the state legislative council and the state legislative assembly."
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He added, "It is very important to get this done once. After this, we will get to know the caste-demographic in our society and that will facilitate us in decision-making for work to be done for them." According to TOI, during the press conference, Kumar said “Earlier, such census used to take place in the country, but the practice was stopped after the independence.”
The TOI report quoted a census official who said that the Census India-2021 will be conducted from April 1 to September 30 through a mobile phone application. Traditionally, it is done with pen and paper. Officials would seek the mobile phone number of the family head besides other informations about toilets, TV, internet, vehicles owned, source of drinking water and other matters during the house-listing phase of the exercise.
Talking about the current state of Covid-19 in Bihar he said, "By active testing and treatment, the Corona situation in Bihar has improved a lot. Nevertheless, people still need to be very cautious about the infection," according to ANI. He also added that the second phase of the vaccination drive is underway in the state after which people aged over 50 and people below age 50 with serious health complications will be administered vaccines.