An important decision has been taken in the Union Cabinet that the census will be held next year i.e. in the year 2027. Although this work was scheduled to be done in 2021, it was delayed by 6 years. The 2021 census was postponed due to the Covid pandemic. This will be completely digital for the first time, which will also include caste enumeration.
Census in India is conducted every ten years. Through this, the country’s population, socio-economic status and other important data are collected. The first modern census in India was conducted in 1872 during the British rule. The first census in independent India was conducted in 1951. So far 15 censuses have been conducted.
The Census Act, 1948 provides the legal basis for the census, which ensures confidentiality. Makes cooperation essential. Overall, it is a huge exercise involving lakhs of employees, and reports are prepared by compiling the data.
What is the census process, how is it done, how do the employees work, what data is collected. Census in India is conducted under the leadership of Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India (RGI), which is under the Ministry of Home Affairs. This process is divided into two main phases.
First phase – House-listing and housing census
This is the first phase, which usually starts a few months before the census. In this a list of houses is made. Enumeration workers go door-to-door and collect information about the number of houses and facilities.
– This stage prepares the basis for population census, so that no house is left out.
– It runs from April to September, because the weather is favourable.
Second phase – Population enumeration
This is the main stage where the actual population is counted. Enumerators go door-to-door and collect personal details of each person. This usually happens in February-March, when people stay at home. The weather is cold.
This process happens at the same time across the country, so that there is no duplication or omission due to migration. In this, the “de jure” method is adopted, in which the person is counted at his usual place of residence.
What’s new in 2027 census
The 2027 census will start from March 1, 2027. Its preparation will start from 2026 itself. The cabinet has approved this. This will be a digital census. This means that census workers will come to people’s homes with digital gadgets. And will use it instead of paper. Census workers may use enumerators’ tablets or mobile apps.
Citizens will get the option of self-enumeration, where they will be able to fill their information themselves through the online portal. This will make the process paperless and faster.
Caste enumeration – For the first time since 1931, caste related data will be collected, which will be important for social policies.
GPS tracking will lead to mapping of houses, which will increase accuracy. States have been instructed to appoint functionaries by January 15, 2026. This census is also politically important, because it can lead to redefinition of Lok Sabha seats.
How do workers go door-to-door and work?
Enumerators are government employees, such as school teachers, Anganwadi workers, or local officials, who are given special training.
Preparation – Before the census, areas are divided into blocks. Each enumerator will be assigned a block i.e. 100-150 houses. They will do this work in coordination with local authorities.
go door to door – Enumerators will go door to door on foot, bicycle, or vehicle. Will work from morning till evening. If any house is found closed, they visit again. In rural areas they roam from village to village and in urban areas they roam from locality to locality.
Data collection – They fill a form, in which information is noted by asking questions. This data is used only for statistical purposes.
What will be the challenges in this
Will have to reach remote areas. Every area has to be covered. If linguistic diversity also presents a challenge, people may also show non-cooperation, but since it is mandatory, police or local help is also taken. In the training, it will be told how to go home and talk or behave with people, especially women.
What data is collected?
demographic data – Name, age, gender, marital status, date of birth, death (if recent), disability.
Social Data – Religion, caste/tribe, language, literacy level, educational qualification.
economic data – Occupation, employment status, income source, migration.
Domestic data – Type of house, ownership, amenities like water, electricity, fuel, toilet, internet etc., assets i.e. vehicle, mobile etc.
Other – Fertility (number of children), mortality and caste-based data in 2027.
How is the final report made?
All these data are compiled at village, tehsil, district, state and national level. Temporary results are released quickly but the final result is released after some time after completely processing the data. Which may take a year or more.
How was the 2011 census conducted?
The 2011 census was the 15th census of India and the largest ever. 121.08 crore people were counted in this. It was completely pen-paper based. This happened in two phases.
In the first phase, house listing and housing census was conducted from April to September 2010. Then in the month of February itself, every person was counted simultaneously in the population enumeration across the country. Its next revision round ran from 1 March to 5 March 2011. In which the missing or newly arrived people were added. Overall the main counting work was done in only 25 days. However, the entire process took about 3 years. The final population census was released in April 2011, while the complete reports continued to be released from 2013 to 2016.
A total of 27 lakh enumerators and supervisors were employed in this. These were mostly government school teachers, Anganwadi workers, Patwari, village servants etc. Each enumerator had to count an average of 120–150 houses or 600–800 people.
– For the first time, the National Population Register was also prepared together.
– For the first time, third gender was given a separate category.
– The total expenditure on this was around ₹ 2,200 crore.
