(CNN) — For millions across India, a rigid caste system thousands of years old still dictates much of daily life – from social circles to dating pools to job opportunities and schooling. (CNN) — For ...

Caste is an ancient system of social hierarchy based on one’s birth that is tied to concepts of purity and social status. Its history, evolution and current state are complicated. A move to outlaw ...

NEW DELHI — India will include caste details in its next census, in a move likely to have sweeping socio-economic and political ramifications for the world's most populous country. Information ...

The caste system has existed in some form in India for at least 3,000 years. It is a social hierarchy passed down through families, and it can dictate the professions a person can work in as well as ...

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar (second from left) inaugurates the caste-based census in his ancestral village of Bakhtiarpur in Bihar, India, April 15, 2023. Credit: Wikipedia/Information and ...

A behind-the-scenes blog about research methods at Pew Research Center. For our latest findings, visit pewresearch.org. India’s caste system is an ancient social hierarchy based on occupation and ...

In the 1990s, the Anthropological Survey of India presented a book that summarized seven years of field research on the country’s most backward castes – the volume was titled “Scheduled Castes.” The ...

Violence and public humiliation of Dalits persisted, with data showing caste atrocities remain widespread and underreported. Policy interventions such as the Karnataka Social Boycott Bill and the ...