The Registrar General of India (RGI) has requested a budget of Rs 14,618.95 crore to facilitate the Census 2027, which is set to be the inaugural “Digital Census” and will gather data on caste, as reported by The Indian Express. Earlier this month, the RGI, which operates under the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), distributed a note seeking the endorsement of the Expenditure Finance Committee (EFC), a central entity within the Ministry of Finance responsible for evaluating government schemes and projects. Following the EFC’s approval, the MHA will present a proposal for the Union Cabinet’s endorsement. The requested amount is intended for both phases of the Census: the houselisting operation scheduled from April to September 2026, and the population enumeration set to commence in February 2027 across the entire nation, with the exception of Ladakh, Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, and Uttarakhand, where it will take place in September 2026. During the houselisting phase, information regarding housing conditions, household amenities, and the assets owned by households will be gathered.
Sources indicate that the upcoming Census will be the first to utilize digital methods, as data will be collected via specialized mobile applications created for this purpose. The public will also have the option to self-enumerate, and caste data will be recorded electronically, according to sources. On April 30, the Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs (CCPA) resolved to incorporate caste enumeration into the Census. It has been reported that the RGI is in the process of developing a website, the Census Monitoring & Management System (CMMS), to oversee and manage the entire operation in real-time. Throughout this process, population data at the village, town, and ward levels will be collected based on various parameters. This encompasses information on housing conditions, amenities and assets, demographics, religion, Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, language, literacy and education, economic activities, migration, and fertility. According to the 2011 Census, the population of the country was recorded at 1.21 billion as of March 1, 2011. It is projected to climb to 1.41 billion this year. With a projected population of 143.6 crore in 2027, the cost of Census will be approximately Rs 101.8 per person.
