New Delhi [India], August 23 (ANI): Leader of Opposition in Bihar Legislative Assembly Tejashwi Yadav on Monday said the caste-based census will help in preparing welfare schemes for people from different sections of society.

"Twice resolutions have been passed in Bihar Assembly for caste census in the state. With such a census we can get data that can help in preparing relevant benefit schemes for people from different sections of society," Yadav told media persons here.

Also Read | Gurugram: Portion of IFFCO Chowk Flyover Collapses Due to Sewer Line Damage, Traffic Diverted.

Meanwhile, the meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the delegation of 10 parties led by Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar to discuss a caste-based census is underway in Delhi.

Besides Bihar Chief Minister, other members of the delegation include RJD's Tejashwi Prasad Yadav, JD(U) leader Vijay Kumar Choudhary, who is also the minister for education and parliamentary affairs, former Chief Minister and President of Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM) Jitan Ram Manjhi, Congress legislature party leader Ajeet Sharma and BJP leader and Bihar minister Janak Ram, CPI-ML legislature party leader Mahboob Alam, Akhtarul Imam of AIMIM, Mukesh Sahni of VIP, Suryakant Paswan of CPI and Ajay Kumar of CPI(M).

Also Read | Monsoon 2021 Forecast: Heavy Rainfall to Continue Over Northeast India, West Bengal and Bihar; IMD Predicts More Rains From August 24.

Earlier, Tejashwi Yadav also had written a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi regarding the demand for a caste-based census.

However, the Central government has so far refused to accede to the demand.

On July 20, in a written reply to a question in Lok Sabha, Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai had said: "The Government of India has decided as a matter of policy not to enumerate caste-wise populations other than SCs and STs in the census."

On March 10, 2021, the Union Ministry of Home Affairs had clarified on caste-related details received from the Socio-Economic Caste Census (SECC) 2011 to the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment. In a reply, the Union Home Ministry said that raw caste data has been provided to the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment (MoSJE) for the classification and categorisation of the data.

"The Office of the Registrar General, India had provided logistics and technical support in conducting the SECC-2011. The raw caste data has been provided to the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment (MoSJE) for the classification and categorization of the data. As informed by MoSJE, there is no proposal to release the caste data at this stage," the Home Ministry had said. (ANI)

(The above story is verified and authored by ANI staff, ANI is South Asia's leading multimedia news agency with over 100 bureaus in India, South Asia and across the globe. ANI brings the latest news on Politics and Current Affairs in India & around the World, Sports, Health, Fitness, Entertainment, & News. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)