(MENAFN- AsiaNet News)

The Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on Tuesday informed the Lok Sabha that the upcoming Census 2027 exercise will take place in two stages, beginning with house listing and housing data collection in 2026.

Census Timeline and Phasing

The first phase will be carried out over a 30-day period between April and September 2026, based on timelines decided by respective states and Union territories.

The second phase, involving the population enumeration, is scheduled for February 2027.

Responding to a question from Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai reaffirmed that March 1, 2027 at 00:00 hours will serve as the reference date for enumeration across the country. However, for Ladakh and snow-bound regions of Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand, the population count will be conducted earlier in September 2026 with October 1, 2026 as the reference date.

Questionnaire Development and Methodology

When asked whether the government would incorporate lessons and best practices from earlier census rounds, including caste-based surveys conducted in some states, Rai said the process already factors in learnings from previous exercises as well as stakeholder consultations.

On queries regarding public inputs on questionnaire drafting, the MHA stated that census questions are finalized only after discussions with relevant ministries, user organisations and subject experts. The draft questionnaires undergo field testing to evaluate practicality before being notified in the official gazette.

A nationwide pre-test for Census 2027 concluded on November 30 and the final questionnaire is expected to be notified shortly, the Ministry added.

The houselisting phase pilot--conducted between November 10 and 30, 2025--also tested the digital data collection model and allowed respondents to self-enumerate between November 1 and 7, 2025.

As per Rule 6 of Census Rules, 1990, the census questionnaires and schedules are notified by the Central government through Official Gazette under sub-section (1) of section 8 of the Act. Office of the Registrar General and Census Commissioner is in the process of finalizing of questionnaire.

Enumerators and Data Collection

During the Census, the MHA told the Lok Sabha, the primary school teachers are usually appointed as enumerators.

"The timeline for Census 2027 has been kept same like the past practices followed in previous censuses."

Caste and Community Enumeration

In Census, it further said, Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) are enumerated strictly as per the notified list of SCs and STs, notified vide the Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order, 1950 and the Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order, 1950 (as amended time to time).

In Census 2027, it later informed, caste enumeration will be done as decided by Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs vide its decision dated April 30, 2025.

"The census questions are notified after finalization. Under sub-section (2) of section 8, of the Census Act, 1948, the respondent is required to answer questions to the best of his knowledge or belief."

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Asianet Newsable English staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

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