CONVERTS HIDE FAITH FOR QUOTA

DC CORRESPONDENT HYDERABAD, DEC. 22 Christians in Telangana are largely concentrated in the undivided Ranga Reddy district, Hyderabad and Medak.

According to the 2014 household survey conducted by the Telangana state government, Christians constituted 1,29,107 households, or 1.27 per cent of the population.

The undivided Ranga Reddy district had the highest 43,813 households, followed by Hyderabad 21,888 and and Medak 13,405 households.

A study conducted by the Centre for Policy Studies found conflicting population figures given by the government survey and Christian institutions as many converted Christians choose to hide the fact so as to continue enjoying the special privileges IN THE 2014 HOUSEHOLD SURVEY CONDUCTED BY THE STATE GOVERNMENT, CHRISTIANS CONSTITUTED 1,29,107 HOUSEHOLDS, OR 1.27 PER CENT OF THE STATE POPULATION given to certain castes.

It found undivided Andhra Pradesh to be a special example of this fuzziness. The Christian population was rising consistently up to 1971, when it reached its peak value of 18.23 lakh in the then undivided state. After 1971, the number began falling sharply, dropping to 14.33 lakh in 1981 and to 11.30 lakh in 2011.

The share of Christians in the total population had risen from 1.68 per cent in 1911 to 4.39 per cent in 1971; it dropped to 2.68 per cent in 1981 and came down to 1.34 per cent now, the report said.

“This sharp decline in the number of Christians in the Census is directly related to a corresponding rise in the number of Scheduled Castes. This can mean two things: Either, the converts to Christianity are choosing to deny it before the Census and other secular authorities; or, they have chosen to revert to their original faith. The former seems more likely from the great divergence between the number of Christians counted by the Census and those estimated by the international church,” the report said.