The Population Census 2027 is the first digital Census and the first in independent India to enumerate caste across all communities. Until now, only Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) have been enumerated during Census exercises.
In April 2025, the Cabinet Committee approved the inclusion of caste enumeration in the upcoming Census, which will be the 16th Census of India and the eighth since Independence.
The Population Census is conducted in two phases: Housing Listing Operations (HLO) and Population Enumeration (PE). The HLO phase is scheduled to conclude on September 30, 2026. Barring a few States, including West Bengal, Assam and Manipur, the exercise has largely been completed across the country.
House Listing Operations phase
The first phase of Population Census 2027, known as the Housing Listing Operations (HLO), began on April 1, 2026, and will conclude on September 30, 2026, across all States and Union Territories, according to a notification issued by the Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India (RG&CCI) on January 7, 2026.
The first phase of Census 2027 includes 33 questions, covering subjects ranging from the sex of the head of the household and the type of cereal consumed to the number of couples usually residing in a household.
Population Enumeration phase
The second phase of the Census, Population Enumeration (PE), will be conducted in February 2027. Caste identities will be recorded during this phase.
A rehearsal of the Population Enumeration phase was conducted from July 1 to July 20, 2026, in 16 States and Union Territories. During the exercise, respondents other than those belonging to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes recorded their caste in an open column, or enumerators entered the caste as declared by residents. The caste of all residents is to be recorded during the PE phase. According to an official notification, the self-enumeration facility will be available from August 17 to August 31, 2026, before the commencement of door-to-door population enumeration.
Around 30 lakh field functionaries, including enumerators, supervisors, master trainers, charge officers and Principal or District Census Officers, will be deployed for data collection, monitoring and supervision of Census operations.
Questionnaire for the second phase of Census 2027
The questions prepared for the second phase of Population Census 2027 provide details of how caste will be enumerated in independent India. The exercise will begin on August 17, 2026, in Ladakh and the snow-bound areas of Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand, ahead of the nationwide exercise scheduled for February 2027.
The Central Government has released a list of questions that Census officers may ask residents within their assigned areas while collecting information through the Household Schedule for Census 2027.
Questions to be asked in the Population Enumeration phase
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Name of the person
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Relationship to head
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Sex
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Date of birth and age (in completed years)
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Current marital status
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Age at marriage (in completed years)
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Spouse name
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Nationality as declared
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Religion
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Scheduled Caste (SC)/Scheduled Tribe (ST)/Caste
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Father’s particulars
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Mother’s particulars
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Disability
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Mother tongue and other languages known
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Literacy and digital literacy status
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Status of attendance in educational institution
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Highest educational level attained and stream/discipline
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Worked at any time during the last year
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Category of economic activity
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Occupation
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Nature of industry, trade or service
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Class of worker
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Non-economic activity (for marginal, semi-marginal and non-workers)
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Seeking or available for work (for marginal, semi-marginal and non-workers)
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Travel to place of work
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Place of birth
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Place of last residence
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Reason for migration
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Duration of stay in this village or town since last migration
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Permanent residential address
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Number of children surviving at present (for currently married, widowed, divorced and separated women only)
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Number of children ever born alive (for currently married, widowed, divorced and separated women only)
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Number of children born alive during the last one year (for currently married women only)
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Place of COVID-19 vaccination
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Total number of bank accounts
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Mobile number (if available)
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Aadhaar number (if available)
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Voter ID number (if available)
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Passport number (for Indian passport holders)
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Availability of driving licence
Self-enumeration process
As part of Census 2027, citizens have been provided with the option of self-enumeration, which has been available since April 1, 2026.
Census 2027 will be conducted entirely in digital mode, with enumerators recording information collected during house visits through mobile applications. To make participation easier, citizens can also submit their details through the self-enumeration facility at a time convenient to them.
The web-based self-enumeration platform allows citizens to provide household information online before an enumerator’s visit. It is intended to provide flexibility and enables respondents to fill in the Census schedule at their convenience in any of the 16 available languages.
Published - August 14, 2026 02:21 pm IST