*Will be conducted in 2 phases
Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Apr 1: Chief Principal Census Officer and Director Census Operations, Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh, Amit Sharma, today shared key details about the upcoming Census 2027, describing it as India’s first fully digital and paperless Census.
Addressing a press conference, he said the massive exercise will be conducted in two phases, ensuring complete confidentiality of individual data under the provisions of the Census Act, 1948. The first phase-House Listing Operations and Housing Census-will be held from June 1 to June 30, 2026, with a 15-day self-enumeration window from May 17 to May 31, 2026. Click here to watch video
Population Enumeration in non-snow-bound areas is scheduled for February 2027, while snow-bound areas will be covered earlier in September 2026 as per notified timelines.
Highlighting a key innovation, Amit Sharma said the option of self-enumeration through an online portal is being introduced for the first time, allowing citizens to submit their own data. He added that household data collection will be carried out using mobile applications with in-built validation checks to enhance accuracy, while a web-based Census Management and Monitoring System (CMMS) will enable real-time supervision of the process.
The officer further informed that preparatory work, including freezing of administrative boundaries, pre-testing, development of multilingual training modules, and appointment of field staff, has already been completed. Training of enumerators and supervisors is currently in progress.
Clarifying doubts, he stated that Census 2027 is distinct from the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, noting that the Census is a comprehensive national exercise for collecting demographic, socio-economic and housing data for policy planning.
On data security, he assured that robust safeguards such as end-to-end encryption, secure transmission protocols and ISO-certified data centres designated as Critical Information Infrastructure have been put in place.
Responding to queries, he said enumerators will visit households with valid identity cards and appointment letters, advising citizens to verify credentials before sharing information.
Amit Sharma urged people to actively participate in the exercise for accurate and reliable data. He was accompanied by Manmeet Singh Loomba, Deputy Chief Principal Census Officer and Nimrat Kour, Assistant Chief Principal Census Officer, J&K.
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