Till date, caste based population was just a rough estimation. It was not based on any survey or authentic facts and figures. Karnataka Government decided to conduct a caste based census and find out the real ratio of people living in Karnataka. The outcome, which has become public after exactly one year, has sent shock waves among every one including political field.
Karnataka has a population of 6.11 crores of which only 6 crore people could be reached to get the information. The survey which was started exactly one year ago, had met much opposition. Despite this the survey was conducted and the information collected has come out now sending shock waves among one and all.
It was believed that Lingayat’s were holding number one position in Karnataka. But the survey is not in favor of this.
According to the survey reports, Dalits hold the number one position standing at 1.08 crores which includes all the categories. Muslims, with all the sub-castes stand at the second place with 75 lakh population. Lingayat population stands at third place with 59 lakh population. Vokkaliga population is 49 lakhs followed by Kuruba population.
These figures are an indication of the population and do not indicate the number of voters. Though conducting caste based census is not a common practice. The central government had conducted similar kind of survey earlier and now Karnataka Government has conducted a survey. The result is certainly going to affect the vote bank politics.
The survey which involved visiting every house involved 1.30 lakh Government employees and involved 55 questions. Information like education level, annual income, house hold possessions etc. were collected from the participants. The survey, first of its kind by any statement Government had a huge budget and finally the trends are out. The final report will be released soon by the Government.