We have no idea how the poor are living: Rahul Gandhi on economic mapping

Congress MP Rahul Gandhi on Saturday reiterated his party's resolve to conduct a caste census if voted to power, asserting that this step, combined with economic mapping, would "uproot" the 50 per cent cap on reservations.

Gandhi said the Congress' slogan is 'ginti (count)', because that would be the first step towards justice. In a post in Hindi on X, he said, "Have we ever wondered who is poor? How many there are, and in what condition? Is it not necessary to count all this?"

The caste survey conducted in Bihar revealed that 88 per cent of the poor population comes from Dalit, tribal, backward and minority communities, Gandhi said. "The figures from Bihar are just a small glimpse of the real picture of the country, we do not even have an idea what conditions the poor of the country are living in," he said.

Simultaneously, Gandhi's Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra entered Chhota Udaipur district of Gujarat on its third day in the state on Saturday, with Gandhi scheduled to address a gathering of social workers in Narmada district later in the day.

Speaking to PTI, senior Congress MP and former Union minister Jairam Ramesh said, "Today is the 56th day, we will be visiting Chhota Udaipur, Bharuch, Narmada and Surat today."

In the morning session, the yatra covered Chhota Udepur and Narmada districts. At 2.00 pm, Gandhi interacted with 70 activists and civil society organisations working for the issues concerning farmers, tribals and Dalits at Kuvarpara in Narmada district, he said in a post on X.

"The yatra will head to Bharuch and Surat districts for the afternoon leg. It will set up camp in Rupan, Surat for the night," Ramesh said.

The yatra made an overnight stay at Jambughoda village of Panchmahal district before starting the journey to Chhota Udepur on Saturday morning. The 6,700-km 'Manipur to Mumbai' yatra entered Gujarat on Thursday from Rajasthan. On Friday morning, Gandhi visited Kamboi Dham near Jhalod to pay his respects to tribal icon Govind Guru.

In an X post on Friday, Gandhi had said the biggest issue in the country was unemployment, and asserted that the youth have now taken a pledge that it will not be 'Mann Ki Baat' (in a reference to PM Narendra Modi's monthly radio broadcast) but 'rozgar ki baat' (talk of employment) in the country.

His remarks came a day after the Congress promised the right to employment as well as apprenticeships for youths in a series of assurances which Gandhi announced at a rally in Rajasthan's Banswara.

"At present, the biggest issue in the country is unemployment, which has been made clear by the messages being received through different mediums from all over the country. Congress's guarantee is a ray of light for the youth who are immersed in the darkness of despair due to Narendra Modi's 'abolish jobs' campaign," Gandhi wrote.

In Saturday's post, he said, "That is why we are going to take two historic steps — caste census, economic mapping — on the basis of which we will uproot the reservation limit of 50 per cent.

"This will not only help in framing correct policies and plans for the poor but will also help in rescuing them from the struggle of education, earning, medicines, and connect them to the mainstream of development," the Congress MP said.