A statistical report on the Dalit community of Nepal has been published. The National Statistics Office analyzed the facts obtained in the 2078 census and published a detailed report with the comparative situation of Dalit and non-Dalit communities.

In the last decade, the population of the Dalit community has increased by 1 percent. According to a public report jointly prepared by the Statistics Office and the Dalit Women's Association (FEDO) on Friday, the population of the Dalit community has reached 3.898 thousand 990. But the stakeholders expressed dissatisfaction with the report. Although the

report for the first time brought detailed information about the situation of Dalit and non-Dalit communities, the census did not give a true picture of the Dalit community, according to Dalit community leaders, rights activists and intellectuals.

According to the 2078 census, Dalit population is 13.4 percent. Out of which 8.6 percent are hill Dalits and 4.8 percent are Terai Dalits. It has been found that the Dalit population has increased by 1 percent in the last decade. Earlier, in the 2068 census, the population of the Dalit community increased by 1.5 percent. At that time the Dalit population was 12.5 percent. 

In the 2058 census, 11 percent of the total population was Dalits. In which the hill Dalits were 7.1 and the Tarai Dalits were 3.9. Among the Dalit community, the government has listed 27 castes of the community which were excluded by caste discrimination by the state.

Among them, 5 hill Dalits and 22 Terai Dalits are included. Among them, the population of Vishwakarma caste is 5 percent. Pariyars constitute 1.9 percent and Mizars 1.6 percent of the population. Among Dalits, the population of Wadi is 11,470 and the population of Gyane is 6,971. Among the Dalits of the Terai, Chamars/Harijans/Rams constitute 1.4 percent of the population while the rest constitute less than 1 percent.

Even now, 36 percent of Dalits live in extreme poverty. In terms of prosperity, the population of the lowest class is less than a quarter of the country's average rate. But in the case of Dalits, it is found to be more than one third. According to the report, 36 percent of the population of the Dalit community belongs to the lowest class. Among the Dalits, 32 percent of the hill Dalits and 44 percent of the Terai Dalits belong to the lower castes. While the number of non-Dalits in the lowest category is only 18 percent.

Similarly, Renu Sijapati, General Secretary of Dalit Mahila Sangh Fedo, said that the condition of the Dalit community is very weak even in the education sector. According to him, the average literacy rate of the country is 76.2 percent. But the literacy rate of Dalit community is only 67.4 percent. Out of this, the literacy rate of Dalits in Terai is only 51.9 percent. The population of Dalits who get higher education is even less. According to

statistics, only 1.6 percent of the Dalit community has completed graduation or above. Similarly, among the school-going population, 13.1 percent of the Dalit community never went to school. 27.5 percent of Dalits in the Terai have never attended school.

While in the case of non-Dalits, this number is only 7.1 percent. According to the report, 87 percent of the total population of Dalits have used electric lights. 10 percent of the total Dalit population is without a toilet. 73 percent of the Dalit population using phones. 15 percent of property is owned by Dalit women. 

Constituent Assembly member Parshuram Ramtel objected saying that the facts of the published report are not trustworthy. This report was made public. Thanks to the government for that. But the facts are not credible,' he said, 'the ground situation is different, the facts are different. This has raised questions about the census method and its effectiveness in the Dalit community. It seems that there is a remnant of humanism somewhere in the census.' He said that in the future, the government needs to conduct such censuses in a way that is effective in the Dalit community. 

Member of the House of Representatives Sita Mizar narrated that the census did not give a true picture of the Dalit community. "At present, Dalits everywhere are not able to say their surname and caste. The general Dalit community is forced to live in the city with the mentality that as soon as someone knows their caste, they are discriminated against,'' he said, 'During the census, when a Dalit says a surname that matches a non-Dalit, the enumerator is not able to distinguish what it means. If you enter the village, it is only Dalits who give birth to many children. Quick marriage belongs to Dalits. Many children belong to Dalits. Again, the situation of Dalit population increasing by only 1 percent is not satisfactory. That's why the Dalit-friendly census has not been done, otherwise the birth rate will increase, how will the population decrease?'

The founding president of Dalit Mahila Sangh, Durga Shob, also said that the statistical picture shown by the report is not reliable. She demanded that the government understand the real situation of the Dalit community and formulate a suitable policy program for their empowerment. 

Member of the House of Representatives Ranendra Barali also said that the fact that the Dalit community is lagging behind in all areas such as poverty, illiteracy, unemployment, opportunities and wealth has been revealed in the government statistics. "The parties write in the constitution and manifesto but they do not see anything for Dalits in the budget, policies and programs," he said. Even in this situation, the state would have invested in the empowerment of Dalits.'

Prada Shivraj Adhikari, vice-chairman of the National Planning Commission, asserted that the government has included policy programs to include the deprived in the mainstream. But when the participants raised questions about the program not being made for the Dalit community, he said that he wanted to end the use of the word Dalit. I don't like the word Dalit. It seems that it is not always called an evergreen Dalit. It is not that we should keep saying Dalit forever,' he said.

After the Vice President Adhikari expressed his intention to remove the word Dalit, rights activists protested in the program. They protested saying that the officer had made an anti-constitutional statement. 

Constituent Assembly member Ramtel accused the Vice President of National Planning Commission of being anti-Dalit like Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli. The vice president of the National Planning Commission will formulate policies based on the constitution and laws. But he is talking against the constitution and has embarked on a campaign to attack Dalits," he said. "His expression has insulted the entire Dalit community."

He warned that the state is constantly discriminating against the Dalit community under many names and that it will take collective action. There is no Dalit word in the government's policy program and budget. There are no programs for the upliftment and empowerment of the Dalit community. The Vice Chairman of the Planning Commission, who is active in the planning of the government, comes here and says that he does not like the word Dalit,' said Ramtel, 'in what sense are we to understand it ? The provision in Article 40 of the Constitution has not been implemented even after a decade of constitution making. Laws are not made.'