New Delhi: The Government of India has announced that the first phase of Census 2027 — the houselisting and housing census — will take place between April 1 and September 30, 2026 across all states and Union territories. Each state and UT will conduct the exercise over a fixed 30-day period within this window, according to a notification issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on Wednesday.
In a major update, citizens will also have the facility of self-enumeration, which will be available for 15 days prior to the commencement of the door-to-door houselisting operations in their respective regions.
Originally scheduled to take place in 2021, the decadal census had to be postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The massive nationwide exercise will now be carried out in two key phases —
✔️ Houselisting and Housing Census: April to September 2026
✔️ Population Enumeration (PE): February 2027
The houselisting exercise will involve a systematic listing of every structure, house and household across the country to build an accurate database for the subsequent population enumeration.
Official Notification
In its notification, Registrar General of India and Census Commissioner Mrityunjay Kumar Narayan stated that the operation will be conducted digitally with enhanced technological support, ensuring better accuracy and efficiency.
Caste Data To Be Counted After Decades
The government has also confirmed that caste data will be digitally recorded during the 2027 population enumeration phase. This marks the first comprehensive caste-based data collection since the colonial-era census conducted between 1881 and 1931. Post-Independence, caste enumeration had been excluded from Census operations.
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.
Digital Census With 30 Lakh Enumerators
The Census will be India’s first fully digital census, with nearly 30 lakh enumerators using specially designed mobile applications on Android and iOS platforms to collect real-time data.
India’s Last Recorded Population
According to Census 2011, India’s population stood at 1.21 billion, with males making up 51.54% and females accounting for 48.46%.
With the formal rollout schedule now confirmed, preparations are expected to gather speed for what will be one of the world’s largest data-collection exercises.