The government has decided not to include caste as one of the parameters in the 2011 census, a demand made by several regional parties. "Caste will not be included in the 2011 census," Home Secretary Gopal K Pillai said.

Parties like PMK, RJD, JD(U) and a few others had demanded in the past inclusion of caste in the decennial census, especially the survey focusing on Other Backward Castes to buttress their demand for OBC reservation.