First phase of Census 2027 to begin in Delhi from April 16

The first phase of Census 2027 will begin in Delhi on April 16, covering house listing operations. The exercise will be fully digital, include self-enumeration, and collect detailed information on households, amenities, and assets across different civic jurisdictions

New Delhi: The first phase of Census 2027, House Listing Operations, will begin in Delhi on April 16, during which information pertaining to all structures, houses, and households will be collected, Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India Mrityunjay Kumar Narayan said on Monday.

The exercise will run in two 30-day windows — from April 16 to May 15 for areas under NDMC and Delhi Cantonment, and for areas under MCD from May 16 to June 15, as outlined in the schedule, he said at a press conference.

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Self-enumeration for the NDMC and Delhi Cantonment areas will begin on April 1, and for MCD areas, from May 1 to May 15.

Citizens will have the option of self-enumeration, where they can visit the self-enumeration website, register, and provide all the information, after which a 16-digit code will be generated, Narayan said.

“This code shall be shared with the enumerator when he visits the household, where he would verify the information shared digitally by an individual through self-enumeration. Citizens can make any necessary corrections at this stage. Once verified, the information shall be submitted,” he said.

The Census 2027 is being conducted in two phases — the first stage is known as house listing and housing census, and the second stage is the population census.

In a first, the exercise will be completely digital, with enumerators using a special mobile application created for the purpose on their phones to collect the information.

Citizens will be asked 33 questions during the exercise regarding basic facilities in their houses, information about the head of the household, such as name and sex, and ownership status.

According to the gazette notification issued on January 22, the enumerators will also ask about the number of dwelling rooms exclusively in possession of the household and the number of married couples living there, the main source of drinking water, the main source of lighting, access to and type of latrine, wastewater outlet, availability of bathing facility, availability of kitchen, LPG and PNG connection, and the main fuel used for cooking.

The enumerators will also collect information about radio and transistor, television set, access to internet, gadgets like laptops, computers, telephones, mobile phones and smartphones, type of vehicle, the main cereal consumed in the household, and mobile numbers for census-related communication, it said.

An officer who intentionally puts “any offensive or improper question” during the Census 2027 will face punishment with imprisonment, which may extend to three years upon conviction.