Follow TNM’s WhatsApp channel for news updates and story links.
The Ministry of Home Affairs, on Monday, June 16, officially notified that the next decennial Census of India will be conducted in the year 2027. The notification, issued by the Office of the Registrar General and Census Commissioner, also sets the reference date for the population enumeration as 00:00 hours on March 1, 2027, except for certain regions.
For the Union Territory of Ladakh and snow-bound, non-synchronous areas in Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, and Uttarakhand, the reference date will be October 1, 2026. This scheduling approach has been consistent in past census exercises to accommodate difficult terrain and weather conditions.
This notification supersedes a 2019 order that had previously outlined the census plan, which was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The last completed census was held in 2011, making the upcoming enumeration the most delayed in independent India’s history.
The Home Ministry had earlier, on June 5, announced that Census 2027 would be conducted in two phases — the house listing and housing schedule, followed by population enumeration — over approximately 11 months. This will also be India’s first digital census, with provisions for self-enumeration through an online portal for households that have updated their National Population Register (NPR) data.
Crucially, the 2027 census will include caste enumeration for the first time since Independence. However, there will be no consolidated OBC category; instead, all castes will be listed individually. SC/ST categorizations and religious identities will continue as before.
While the caste count carries political implications, the government has clarified that it is unlikely to affect existing reservation policies or the 50% cap on quotas.
As per the 84th Constitutional Amendment Act (2001), the first census after 2026 will form the basis for the delimitation of Lok Sabha and Assembly constituencies, including the implementation of the 33% women’s reservation under the 128th Constitutional Amendment (2023). However, officials have indicated that the final data may only be published after the 2029 general elections.
Notably, no mention was made regarding an update to the NPR — a contentious issue linked to citizenship — which was previously scheduled to be carried out as part of the 2021 census.