The last data on the caste composition is found in the 1931 census, nine decades ago. In 1941, though caste was enumerated, the report wasn’t published
Enough investments have been made to use the caste census as a fulcrum of forthcoming political discourse ahead of 2024 general elections. The issue may be Bihar-centric but the answer has national implications, at least at a time when the Opposition unity is envisaged as the only way to combat the BJP that opposes caste census.