Govt Confirms Caste Enumeration In Census 2027; Rejects Social Media Misinformation

The Central government firmly dismissed rumours about the exclusion of caste enumeration from the upcoming Census 2027 and asserted that it will include it in the data collection process.

Govt debunks misinformation on caste data in Census 2027

The Press Information Bureau (PIB) took to the social media platform X on Monday evening to counter false claims spreading online.

In its post, PIB clarified, “The Government has already announced that the Caste enumeration will be conducted along with Census 2027.”

It also urged citizens to verify facts from credible sources and avoid sharing unverified content.

The official clarification included a link to the relevant government press release.

Home Minister reviews census preparations

Union Home Minister Amit Shah chaired a high-level meeting on June 15 to review preparations for the census.

The meeting included senior officials such as the Union Home Secretary, the Registrar General, and the Census Commissioner of India.

Following this, the government issued the official gazette notification confirming that the census would be conducted in two phases:

• Houselisting Operation (HLO): Data on housing conditions, household assets, and available amenities will be collected.
• Population Enumeration (PE): Information on demographic, socio-economic, and cultural details of each person will be recorded.

Caste enumeration will be an integral part of the Population Enumeration phase.

Massive workforce to power the digital census

The government will deploy 34 lakh enumerators and 1.3 lakh functionaries for the 2027 Census.

This will mark India’s 16th Census since the first in 1872 and the eighth after Independence.

The government will conduct the census digitally for the first time using mobile applications and will also enable self-enumeration through an online portal.

Officials have emphasised that stringent data security protocols will be in place during the collection, transmission, and storage of data.

Political reactions and clarifications

The notification issued on Monday triggered a response from the Congress, which questioned the silence around caste data in the gazette.

Congress leader Jairam Ramesh accused the government of a ‘U-turn’ and urged adoption of the Telangana model with detailed caste-wise data.

The Union Home Ministry reaffirmed its plan to conduct caste enumeration as part of the upcoming census.

This will be the first caste-based census in Independent India. The British government conducted the last comprehensive caste enumeration between 1881 and 1931. Post-Independence, the Indian government omitted caste from all censuses, making this decision a significant policy shift.

The reference date for the census will be October 1, 2026, for snow-bound areas like Ladakh, and March 1, 2027, for the rest of the country.

Prime Minister Modi approved the inclusion of caste enumeration on April 30, 2025.

The government’s reaffirmation puts to rest widespread speculation and underlines its commitment to data-driven governance and transparency.

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