Census 2027: Registrar General Reviews Second-Phase Preparations in Andhra Pradesh
The Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India, Mrityunjay Kumar Narayan, met census officials in Andhra Pradesh to review preparations for the second phase of Census 2027.
He asked them to make sure that every single person is counted, that the data is accurate, and that the work is finished within the fixed deadlines.
The second phase is Population Enumeration, in which details of every person (age, sex, education, work, migration, and for the first time since 1931, caste) are collected. For most of India, it is due in February 2027, with 00:00 hours of 1 March 2027 as the reference date.
The first phase, Houselisting and Housing Census, ran between April and September 2026. Census 2027 is India's first digital census, with mobile apps for enumerators and an online self-enumeration option for households.
Census of India: Constitutional and Legislative Basis
The census is the official count of every person living in India, done once every ten years. It also collects details about each person and each house: age, sex, religion, language, education, work, migration, housing and amenities. It is the single largest source of information about India's people, and almost every government plan depends on it.
The Registrar General's review in Andhra Pradesh is part of getting ready for the Population Enumeration phase. His stress on "every individual counted" reflects the core rule of the census: a complete, accurate headcount on the reference date, because seats, reservation and welfare schemes will depend on these numbers for years.
Delimitation in India (Articles 82 and 170)
Delimitation means fixing the number of seats each state gets in the Lok Sabha and in its Legislative Assembly, and drawing the boundaries of each constituency. It is done so that each elected member represents roughly the same number of people. It is carried out by an independent body called the Delimitation Commission, using population figures from a census.
Census 2027 is the "first census after 2026" that the 84th Amendment points to. Once its population figures are published, the long freeze can end, and a new delimitation can reallocate seats and start women's reservation. That is why an accurate count, which the Registrar General stressed in Andhra Pradesh, matters so much.
- Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India: Mrityunjay Kumar Narayan
- Census 2027: 16th census, 8th after Independence; first digital census; includes caste enumeration
- Phase 1 (Houselisting and Housing Census): 1 April to 30 September 2026
- Phase 2 (Population Enumeration): February 2027 for most of India; reference date 00:00 hours, 1 March 2027
- Snow-bound areas (Ladakh, parts of J&K, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand): reference date 1 October 2026
- Budget approved: about ₹11,718 crore
- Census is Entry 69 of the Union List; governed by the Census Act, 1948