Answer:

Castes in Indian society refer to a SOCIAL GROUP where membership is decided by birth.[1] Members of such local groups are endogamous, i.e. they tend to enter into marital RELATIONSHIPS among themselves. They often have related political preferences.

For political/government purposes, the castes[2] are broadly divided into[3][4]

Forward Castes (30.80% of the population)[3][5][6][7]

Other Backward Classes (OBC) (about 41.0% of the population)[3][5][6][7][8]

Scheduled Castes (about 19.7% of the population)[3][7][8]

Scheduled Tribe (about 8.5% of the population)[3][5][6][7]

The Indian Muslims (13.4%), and Christians (2.3%) often function as castes since they too marry among themselves.

Explanation:

Castes in Indian society refer to a social group where membership is decided by birth.[1] Members of such local groups are endogamous, i.e. they tend to enter into marital relationships among themselves. They often have related political preferences.

For political/government purposes, the castes[2] are broadly divided into[3][4]

Forward Castes (30.80% of the population)[3][5][6][7]

Other Backward Classes (OBC) (about 41.0% of the population)[3][5][6][7][8]

Scheduled Castes (about 19.7% of the population)[3][7][8]

Scheduled Tribe (about 8.5% of the population)[3][5][6][7]

The Indian Muslims (13.4%), and Christians (2.3%) often function as castes since they too marry among themselves.