Government has not published full census data

http://www.sunday-guardian.com/news/government-has-not-published-full-census-data
Government has not published full census data

The Registrar General admitted this in response to an RTI plea seeking
the exact number of transgenders.

NAVTAN KUMAR New Delhi | 22nd Mar 2014


hree years after completing the 2011 cencus, the government has still
not published the final figures.
The matter came to light when the office of the Registrar General of
India, governed by the Union Home Ministry, admitted in response to an
RTI, saying: "The Census 2011 figures not yet published." Census is
conducted every 10 years and the last census was conducted in 2011.

Lucknow-based RTI activist Sanjay Sharma wanted to know about the
numbers of kinnars (transgender community) and welfare schemes
initiated for them by the government. This led to a series of
communications between him and the government.

A shocked Sharma, while speaking to The Sunday Guardian, said he had
not expected such a reply from the Ministry. Though so far his RTI
focused on the issue of kinnars, he is now planning to file a fresh
appeal before the government to clarify whether the government is
using "provisional" figures of Census 2011 and also to fnd out why
there has been such a big delay in publishing the final Census 2011
figures.
"What is even more perplexing is that the Registrar General of India,
instead of providing details of kinnars, provided the figures of
Kanaura, Kinnara members, who come under the Scheduled Tribe category
in Himachal Pradesh. But the annexure giving detailed number of these
Himachal tribes gave the earlier Census figures of 2001. This reflects
that the government's claims of technological advancements,
including computerisation in India are hollow," said Sharma.

"All future developmental schemes are planned on the basis of data
collected during the census and non-publication of the final Census
2011 data means that government is still relying on the obsolete
census 2001 data," he added.
Sharma said he had first approached the Ministry of Social Justice &
Empowerment in January 2014. The Ministry replied that an expert
committee has been constituted to look into the problems beings faced
by the transgender community and that "the committee is expected to
submit its report shortly". As regards their population, the Ministry
referred the matter to the Registrar General of India.

The Registrar General of India, in February, told the petitioner that
"actual number" of kinnars could not be obtained from the Census as
three codes (1 for male, 2 for female and 3 for others) were provided
while collecting data. As per the reply, "the Census officials were
directed to write 3 in case the person concerned was not willing to
write code 1 or 2"."Therefore, there is a possibility that people
other than kinnars could also have written code 3. There is also a
possibility that a kinnar might have written code 1 or 2. Therefore,
it is not possible to get the actual number of kinnars," said Vijay
Kumar, deputy director of the Office of the Registrar General of
India, in his reply to the petitioner. The government had released the
provisional data of the 5th Indian Census in 2011, the process for
which was conducted for one year starting from 1 April 2010. According
to it, the population of India was 1,210,193,422 as of 1 March 2011.

--
- Urvashi Sharma
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