Centre approves caste count in upcoming Census; clears ₹22,864 crore highway project, hikes sugarcane FRP

New Delhi: In a major decision, the Centre on Wednesday approved the inclusion of caste enumeration in the forthcoming Census. The decision was taken by the Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs, which met today, amid growing demands for a caste census.

Union information and broadcasting minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said the move was prompted by the need for transparency and consistency, noting that previous caste-related surveys had been conducted in an ad hoc and often politically motivated manner.

“Such surveys have created doubts in society. Considering all these facts, and to ensure that our social fabric is not disturbed by politics, caste enumeration should be transparently included in the Census instead of surveys. This will strengthen the social and economic structure of our society while the nation continues to progress,” the minister said.

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Caste has not been officially included in the Census since Independence. In 2010, then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh assured the Lok Sabha that the matter would be considered by the Cabinet, and a Group of Ministers was formed to examine it. Most political parties supported a caste census, yet the United Progressive Alliance government ultimately opted for a separate survey instead.

“It is well understood that Congress and its INDIA alliance partners have used caste census only as a political tool. As per article 246 of the Constitution of India, the subject Census is listed at 69 in the Union List in Seventh Schedule. According to Constitution of India, Census is a Union subject,” the minister said, defending the Centre’s decision to include caste data in the official Census.

Key infrastructure and farm decisions

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs also approved a major infrastructure project: the development, maintenance and management of a 166.80 km, four-lane, access-controlled greenfield National Highway (NH-06) from Mawlyngkhung near Shillong in Meghalaya to Panchgram near Silchar in Assam.

The ₹22,864 crore project will be developed on hybrid annuity mode (HAM) and will significantly reduce travel time between Guwahati and Silchar. The stretch includes 144.80 km in Meghalaya and 22 km in Assam.

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According to Vaishnaw, the highway will improve connectivity to Tripura, Mizoram, Manipur, and the Barak Valley region, and support industrial development in Meghalaya’s cement and coal belts.

In another key decision, the Cabinet approved a hike in the fair and remunerative price (FRP) of sugarcane for the 2025-26 sugar season (October–September) to ₹355 per quintal at a sugar recovery rate of 10.25%. The revised FRP will benefit more than 55 million sugarcane farmers and comes into effect from 1 October 2025.

The new FRP represents a 4.41% increase over the current season’s FRP of ₹340 per quintal. For every 0.1 percentage point increase in recovery above 10.25%, a premium of ₹3.46 per quintal will be paid. The same amount will be deducted for a 0.1-point reduction—however, no deduction will be applied for recoveries below 9.5%, with farmers in such cases assured of ₹329.05 per quintal.

The cost of production for sugarcane in 2025–26 is estimated at ₹173 per quintal. The new FRP of ₹355 therefore marks a return of 105.2% over production cost, Vaishnaw said.

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The FRP has been determined based on recommendations from the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP) and consultations with states and stakeholders.

In the ongoing 2024–25 sugar season, farmers have been paid ₹85,094 crore of the ₹97,270 crore dues (87%) as of 28 April. For the previous season (2023–24), ₹1,11,703 crore of the ₹1,11,782 crore dues (99.92%) have been cleared, the government said.

The Indian Sugar & Bio-Energy Manufacturers Association hailed the government’s decision to increase the FRP for sugarcane. This would enhance the earnings of sugarcane farmers by over ₹20,000 crore, taking the total to around ₹1.2 trillion in the upcoming sugar season, it said.

However, the association said that while the increase in FRP would benefit farmers, it would raise the cost of raw material for mills. Aligning the minimum selling price of sugar and ethanol procurement prices with the revised FRP for sugarcane would allow mills to absorb the increased costs without financial strain, the association said.