Census 2027 schedule notified: House-to-house enumeration from January 25; poll-bound states excluded

The Ministry of Home Affairs has notified the schedule for the long-awaited Census of India 2027, with house-to-house population enumeration set to begin on January 25 and continue until February 28, 2027, across most States and Union Territories.

According to the official notification issued on October 30, 2026, the exercise will not be conducted during this period in poll-bound States and certain snow-bound regions. The government said the census in Goa, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Uttarakhand and Manipur would be held later.

The notification was issued by the Office of the Registrar General of India under the Census Act, 1948.

Poll-bound states, snow-bound regions excluded

The notification excludes several areas from the scheduled enumeration for the time being. These include Manipur, until further declaration, Goa, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Uttarakhand, the Union Territory of Ladakh, snow-bound non-synchronous areas of Himachal Pradesh and the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.

The government said alternative dates for these areas would be announced separately.

Officials noted that the electoral process would require administrative resources in poll-bound States, while winter conditions and accessibility issues posed challenges for census work in snow-bound regions.

Online self-enumeration from January 10

Citizens will be able to complete self-enumeration through an online portal between January 10 and January 24, 2027, ahead of the door-to-door exercise.

A revisional round will follow from March 1 to March 5, 2027, to verify and correct the information recorded during enumeration.

The reference date for Census 2027 has been fixed as 00:00 hours on March 1, 2027.

The government has said the exercise will involve both digital self-enumeration and traditional household surveys conducted by census personnel.

First census in 16 years

India’s last census was conducted in 2011. The subsequent exercise, scheduled for 2021, was postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic and has remained pending since then.

The upcoming census is expected to provide updated demographic data after a gap of 16 years. The information will be crucial for policy planning, resource allocation and the implementation of welfare schemes.

The population enumeration is also expected to provide the basis for future administrative and developmental decisions.

(With IANS inputs)