India begins counting more than a billion people in massive census
The two-phase exercise - the world’s most ambitious - will see three million officials count every Indian.
Coverage by Political Leaning
See how different sides of the spectrum reported this story
Notable Quotes
"For self-enumeration, respondents can log into the SE portal using their mobile number and other basic details, and complete the Census schedule at their convenience."
— Mritunjay Kumar Narayan , Executive
Tags
All Coverage
The two-phase exercise - the world’s most ambitious - will see three million officials count every Indian.
India's 2027 Census will commence its first phase on April 1, 2026, marking the first fully digital census with a self-enumeration option.
India's first fully digital census starts on April 1, 2026, aiming to transform data collection with mobile apps, self-enumeration, and real-time monitoring for faster, more accurate governance.
The 2027 Census will be conducted digitally in two phases, with enumerators using a specially developed mobile application to collect data, marking India's 16th Census and its eighth since Independence.
The government has clarified that live-in couples considering their relationship a stable union will be treated as married in the upcoming Census 2026, as per the released FAQs.
The 2027 Census will be conducted digitally for the first time, introducing self-enumeration from April 1 to 15, followed by House Listing and Housing Census from April 16 to May 15, 2026.
Similar Stories
Related coverage based on topic and tags
Beyond China's humanoid robots, a quieter machine revolution is unfolding
There are more than two million robots working in China's factories - and they are scaling up fast.
August 24, 2026 at 10:13 PMBBC Inside Science
The datacentres are coming, potentially in the hundreds.
August 27, 2026 at 08:00 PMIndian economic growth likely slowed to 7.1% in April-June quarter - Reuters poll - Reuters
Indian economic growth likely slowed to 7.1% in April-June quarter - Reuters poll Reuters
August 25, 2026 at 02:09 AMChina, India hold border talks, agree to continue search for boundary settlement - Reuters
China, India hold border talks, agree to continue search for boundary settlement Reuters
August 25, 2026 at 04:29 PMChina, India reaffirm border peace, expand communication channels - Reuters
China, India reaffirm border peace, expand communication channels Reuters
August 26, 2026 at 04:37 PMIndian police use water cannon at new protest over test paper leaks - Reuters
Indian police use water cannon at new protest over test paper leaks Reuters
August 25, 2026 at 10:59 AM