New Delhi: A recent announcement by the Bihar government has evoked strong reactions across the state. During the counting of social groups in the state, people belonging to the ‘third gender’ have been declared as separate castes. It is to be noted that the castes of Bihar will henceforth be identified on the basis of specific codes and in the form of numbers. Every nation has already been given a numerical code.
For example, the sub-categories of Maithil, Kanyakubja and other Brahmins are integrated into a single social entity called Brahmins, whose caste code will be 126. No separate count of its sub-categories will be done. Similarly, rajput’s caste code is 169, bhumihar (142), kayastha (21), and has been set at 22 for members of the ‘third gender’. A total of 215 codes have been allotted to different castes in the state and the ‘third gender’ has also been treated as a nation by allotting a separate caste code.
