To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what proportion of his Department's locally employed staff in India are of Dalit origin; and at what level they are employed. (145423)

DFID's locally engaged staff in India are recruited directly by our office in New Delhi. Its recruitment policy states that DFID does not discriminate on the basis of sex, caste, ethnicity, religion or other diversity criteria. However, we do not ask applicants or new recruits to provide information about their background because of the sensitivities involved in India, especially with regard to caste.

We are therefore unable to provide the information requested.