Bengaluru: Enumerators across Greater Bengaluru have abandoned the use of the unique household identification (UHID) system and are instead conducting the socio-educational survey (caste census) through a direct house-to-house approach. The shift came after repeated complaints that the UHID lists — devoid of phone numbers and often inaccurately mapped — made it nearly impossible to trace households. “At first, we were told to go by UHID but most of these IDs are not working or list houses far apart — 900 metres, sometimes 2km away. It’s just unpractical,” said an enumerator from Bengaluru city. “Now we are just going wardwise. BLOs told us to cover all houses on a street instead of following the chart. We manually record data and later input UHIDs ourselves.” The move has considerably improved enumeration, but progress is still slow. “Each house takes at least 45 minutes,” the enumerator said. “I completed only 16 of the 176 houses allotted to me. Some citizens simply refuse to give details. Four out of 10 people say, ‘Why should we tell you?’ and shut the door.” In areas like Doddakammanahalli, confusion marked the first day as teachers arrived at their assigned wards without supervision or proper instructions. “Yesterday we didn’t even get our area allotment because the supervisor never turned up,” said another enumerator from the southern city limits. “Today it’s smoother, but we could only survey two houses. Many of us weren’t trained, so we learned by watching others.” A teacher from Mangaluru said, “If there were phone numbers, it would help. Without them, we’re just guessing.” While fieldwork continues, Bengaluru enumerators say pace and coordination issues may push the survey beyond its initial deadline. “We start at 9am and go on till 4.30pm, but it’s very tough,” said the Bengaluru enumerator. “We’re managing somehow—with hard work and a bit of guesswork.”
