Census 2027 first phase to be held between April and September: Govt

The government earlier said that Census 2027 will include electronic collection of caste data during the population enumeration phase

• Census 2027 houselisting to run April-Sept 2026, each region gets 30 days
• A 15-day self-enumeration window will precede houselisting operations
• Caste data will be collected digitally during population enumeration in Feb 2027

Did our AI summary help?

A government notification on Wednesday said that the first phase of Census 2027 -- houselisting operations -- will take place between April 1 and September 30 this year in all states and union territories, with each region completing the process within a 30-day timeframe.

The Ministry of Home Affairs said a 15-day self-enumeration window will be available immediately before the commencement of the houselisting exercise.

The nationwide census exercise, which was due in 2021, had to be deferred because of the Covid-19 outbreak. The extensive operation will be carried out in two stages, with houselisting and housing census scheduled from April to September 2026 and population enumeration set for February 2027.

The houselisting and housing census systematically lists out all the structures, houses and households throughout the country for preparation of a sound frame for conduct of the population enumeration.

"...the Central government hereby declares that the houselisting operations of the Census of India 2027 shall take place between 1st April, 2026 and 30th September, 2026 in all states and union territories during the period of 30 days specified by each state and Union territory. There shall also be an option for self-enumeration which shall be conducted in 15 days’ time period just before the start of house to house houselisting operations of 30 days," a notification issued by registrar general of India and census commissioner Mrityunjay Kumar Narayan said.

The government earlier said that Census 2027 will include electronic collection of caste data during the population enumeration phase.

The last comprehensive caste-based census was conducted during British rule between 1881 and 1931, with caste excluded from all census exercises since Independence. The decision to reintroduce caste enumeration was taken by the Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on April 30 last year.

In the first ever digital Census, conducted by around 30 lakh enumerators, data will be collected using mobile applications that will be available for both Android as well as iOS versions to ensure better quality data.

The population of the country, according to Census 2011, was 1,210.19 million of which 623.72 million (51.54 per cent) were males and 586.46 million (48.46 per cent) were females.