<p>Hyderabad: Among the <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/tags/telangana">Telangana </a>Socio, Economic, Educational, Employment, Political and Caste (SEEEPC) Survey 2024's most unexpected findings is the emergence of a sizable and diverse group of citizens who identify as having "No Caste."</p><p>Nearly 12 lakh individuals, now the tenth largest community in Telangana, declined to place themselves within conventional caste categories, opting instead for a civic identity that transcends them. </p><p>The data sketches a distinctive profile: Predominantly urban, relatively well-educated, and heavily represented in professional and merit-based sectors. </p>.SCs, STs three times more backward than general castes: Telangana SEEEPC survey.<p>The average "No Caste" respondent is a graduate-educated professional living in Hyderabad's extended metropolitan region, typically employed in elite government services such as the IAS or IPS, or in urban private sectors including software, BPO, and medicine.</p><p>Their household is generally middle to upper-middle income, residing in pucca housing, with limited reliance on public welfare. While publicly caste-neutral, 43 per cent of them claim to possess a caste certificate and may have previously accessed reservation benefits (13.5 per cent). </p><p>Their profile reflects a trajectory of mobility shaped by caste-linked pathways, now navigating institutional and professional spaces where caste neutrality is selectively performed but not structurally absolute. </p><p>The Telangana SEEEPC Survey introduced a new classification category “No Caste” and assigned the code 999. </p>.Agriculture related schemes benefited more by general castes in Telangana.<p>Though grouped under the broader Other Castes (OC) or General category, this represents a sociologically distinct social group. This inclusion by the Telangana state government was in response to a writ petition requesting recognition of caste-neutral categories like “No Caste,” “No Religion,” and “No Social Category.” </p><p>Based on the the High Court interim direction and also several representations to the Government, in adherence to the Article 15 (1) of that Constitution of India, which guarantees the freedom of the individual to live without proclaiming one’s own Caste, or the Religion, the government included “No Caste and No Religion” categories in the enumeration manual with necessary codes.</p><p>The concentration of “No Caste” identification in urban areas suggests a correlation with patterns of mobility, access, and institutional positioning. </p><p>Over 73 per cent of this population resides within Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation limits, with another 13 per cent in surrounding districts. </p><p>Smaller representations are found in Nizamabad, Nirmal, and Hanamkonda, while rural districts such as Khammam, Kamareddy, and Siddipet show the lowest concentrations. </p><p>This spatial profile supports the interpretation that “No Caste” identification is enabled by the anonymity, exposure, and fluid social contexts more commonly found in urban regions.</p><p>An important feature of the “No Caste” profile is its substantial representation in secure and competitive public sector employment.</p><p>Compared to groups across OC, BC, SC, and ST categories, “No Caste” individuals occupy elite positions at disproportionately high rates relative to their 3.4 per cent population share. </p><p>These roles are primarily accessed through competitive examinations, which structurally favour individuals with prior access to quality education, English proficiency, and professional social capital—advantages more common in urban, upper-middle class contexts.</p><p>The group shows particularly high representation in top-tier government services such as IAS/IPS (22.9 per cent), other Central Government positions (13.2 per cent), and among judges (9.3 per cent). T</p><p>hese are not network-driven sectors but gatekept through highly competitive and credential-dependent processes.</p><p>This pattern suggests that many “No Caste” individuals likely emerged from households that invested heavily in education, possibly drawing on historic OC(General Caste) privileges or having transitioned through BC/SC/ST categories with upward mobility over generations. The choice to adopt a caste-neutral identity in these contexts may reflect both a distancing from caste-based disadvantage and a strategic alignment with the meritocratic norms of elite state institutions, said the Survey.</p>
<p>Hyderabad: Among the <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/tags/telangana">Telangana </a>Socio, Economic, Educational, Employment, Political and Caste (SEEEPC) Survey 2024's most unexpected findings is the emergence of a sizable and diverse group of citizens who identify as having "No Caste."</p><p>Nearly 12 lakh individuals, now the tenth largest community in Telangana, declined to place themselves within conventional caste categories, opting instead for a civic identity that transcends them. </p><p>The data sketches a distinctive profile: Predominantly urban, relatively well-educated, and heavily represented in professional and merit-based sectors. </p>.SCs, STs three times more backward than general castes: Telangana SEEEPC survey.<p>The average "No Caste" respondent is a graduate-educated professional living in Hyderabad's extended metropolitan region, typically employed in elite government services such as the IAS or IPS, or in urban private sectors including software, BPO, and medicine.</p><p>Their household is generally middle to upper-middle income, residing in pucca housing, with limited reliance on public welfare. While publicly caste-neutral, 43 per cent of them claim to possess a caste certificate and may have previously accessed reservation benefits (13.5 per cent). </p><p>Their profile reflects a trajectory of mobility shaped by caste-linked pathways, now navigating institutional and professional spaces where caste neutrality is selectively performed but not structurally absolute. </p><p>The Telangana SEEEPC Survey introduced a new classification category “No Caste” and assigned the code 999. </p>.Agriculture related schemes benefited more by general castes in Telangana.<p>Though grouped under the broader Other Castes (OC) or General category, this represents a sociologically distinct social group. This inclusion by the Telangana state government was in response to a writ petition requesting recognition of caste-neutral categories like “No Caste,” “No Religion,” and “No Social Category.” </p><p>Based on the the High Court interim direction and also several representations to the Government, in adherence to the Article 15 (1) of that Constitution of India, which guarantees the freedom of the individual to live without proclaiming one’s own Caste, or the Religion, the government included “No Caste and No Religion” categories in the enumeration manual with necessary codes.</p><p>The concentration of “No Caste” identification in urban areas suggests a correlation with patterns of mobility, access, and institutional positioning. </p><p>Over 73 per cent of this population resides within Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation limits, with another 13 per cent in surrounding districts. </p><p>Smaller representations are found in Nizamabad, Nirmal, and Hanamkonda, while rural districts such as Khammam, Kamareddy, and Siddipet show the lowest concentrations. </p><p>This spatial profile supports the interpretation that “No Caste” identification is enabled by the anonymity, exposure, and fluid social contexts more commonly found in urban regions.</p><p>An important feature of the “No Caste” profile is its substantial representation in secure and competitive public sector employment.</p><p>Compared to groups across OC, BC, SC, and ST categories, “No Caste” individuals occupy elite positions at disproportionately high rates relative to their 3.4 per cent population share. </p><p>These roles are primarily accessed through competitive examinations, which structurally favour individuals with prior access to quality education, English proficiency, and professional social capital—advantages more common in urban, upper-middle class contexts.</p><p>The group shows particularly high representation in top-tier government services such as IAS/IPS (22.9 per cent), other Central Government positions (13.2 per cent), and among judges (9.3 per cent). T</p><p>hese are not network-driven sectors but gatekept through highly competitive and credential-dependent processes.</p><p>This pattern suggests that many “No Caste” individuals likely emerged from households that invested heavily in education, possibly drawing on historic OC(General Caste) privileges or having transitioned through BC/SC/ST categories with upward mobility over generations. The choice to adopt a caste-neutral identity in these contexts may reflect both a distancing from caste-based disadvantage and a strategic alignment with the meritocratic norms of elite state institutions, said the Survey.</p>