Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Saturday gave the go-ahead for a ‘caste survey’ to gauge the economic conditions of people living in the state.
“Caste census will be done by the Government of India and that is not the state subject. We are planning only a caste survey and its notification will be issued soon. It will be a survey to find out the economic condition of families,” he told media after attending the Jain International Trade Organisation (JITO) -Connect 2023 here.
He said the decision to conduct such a survey was taken at the AICC meeting held in Raipur early this year.
“After a notification to this survey, if the code of conduct comes for the assembly polls (may be next week), then there would be no problem as the Supreme Court has given a decision on this in favour of Bihar,” the chief minister clarified.
He said the survey would take time and that it took one-and-a-half years in Bihar too.
“We decided to conduct the survey… that is a big thing. We would like to know the financial condition of every family so that they can get the benefit of the plans made in the future,” he said.
“I emphasize that Right to Social Security should be implemented in the country. How will we know who gets social security? For this, a survey of every family is necessary. Once the survey is done, it will be known who is actually in need,” Gehlot added.
Asked about Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s remarks that if the BJP comes to power in Rajasthan, it would not stop the welfare schemes started by the Congress, the chief minister said, “It means that the PM has accepted that our schemes are excellent.”
“I ask the Prime Minister, when will you announce Rs 25 lakh health insurance? When will you implement the old pension scheme? When will you start the Urban Employment Guarantee Scheme?” he asked.
“We have made big decisions, Modi should come here and tell us when will the Center implement those decisions, only then will anyone believe what he says,” Gehlot added.