Still, Indians conduct their social lives largely within caste hierarchies. This feeling may reflect personal experience: 82% of Indians say they have not personally faced discrimination based on their caste in the year prior to taking the survey. But most Indians do not feel there is a lot of caste discrimination in the country, and two-thirds of those who identify with Scheduled Castes or Tribes say there is not widespread discrimination against their respective groups. For example, a substantial share of Brahmins say they would not be willing to accept a person who belongs to a Scheduled Caste as a neighbor. And about a quarter of Christians belong to Scheduled Tribes, a far larger share than among any other religious community.Ĭaste segregation remains prevalent in India.

Muslims and Sikhs – like Jains – are more likely than Hindus to belong to General Category castes. Meanwhile, an overwhelming majority of Buddhists say they are Dalits, while about three-quarters of Jains identify as members of General Category castes.

Hindus mirror the general public in their caste composition. Most Indians say they are outside this General Category group, describing themselves as members of Scheduled Castes (often known as Dalits, or historically by the pejorative term “untouchables”), Scheduled Tribes or Other Backward Classes (including a small percentage who say they are part of Most Backward Classes). Just 4% of Indians today identify as Brahmin. The highest caste within the General Category is Brahmin, historically the priests and other religious leaders who also served as educators. The survey finds that three-in-ten Indians (30%) identify themselves as members of General Category castes, a broad grouping at the top of India’s caste system that includes numerous hierarchies and sub-hierarchies. While the caste system originally was for Hindus, nearly all Indians today identify with a caste, regardless of their religion. It is a social hierarchy passed down through families, and it can dictate the professions a person can work in as well as aspects of their social lives, including whom they can marry.

The caste system has existed in some form in India for at least 3,000 years.

Snakes and Stones by Lisa Fowler