Census 2027 Phase-1 to begin in NDMC, Delhi Cantonment areas from April 15

The government has notified the questionnaire for the first phase of Census 2027 — the house-listing and housing schedule — which includes 33 questions.

The first phase of Census 2027 — the house-listing exercise — will begin in the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) and Delhi Cantonment areas from April 15. Election authorities have written to the Delhi government seeking exemption for booth level officers (BLOs) from census-related duties, as the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls is also expected to begin next month.

The second phase, population enumeration, will begin on February 1, 2027, and will capture demographic, socio-economic and cultural details of residents. (HT Archive/representational image)

The house-listing process will start in areas under the Municipal Corporation of Delhi from May 15, officials said.

The government has notified the questionnaire for the first phase of Census 2027 — the house-listing and housing schedule — which includes 33 questions.

The exercise will record details such as the ownership status of the house, its use, condition, and the predominant flooring and roofing materials.

The second phase, population enumeration, will begin on February 1, 2027, and will capture demographic, socio-economic and cultural details of residents.

The government has confirmed that caste data will be captured electronically during this phase. According to Census 2011, Delhi’s population stood at 16,787,941, including 8,987,326 males and 7,800,615 females.

The office of the chief electoral officer (CEO), Delhi, has written to the divisional commissioner seeking exemption for booth level officers (BLOs) and BLO supervisors from census duties, citing the upcoming Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.

In a March 10 letter, the CEO’s office referred to a communication from the Election Commission of India stating that the SIR exercise is likely to begin in April and preparatory work should be completed at the earliest.

The letter said mapping of electors in the 2025 electoral roll with those listed in the 2002 roll is currently underway. As part of the exercise, BLOs are conducting door-to-door visits to collect electoral details.

It noted that Delhi has 13,033 polling stations and around 7,500 teachers from the Directorate of Education and the Municipal Corporation of Delhi are deployed as BLOs, apart from other ministerial staff serving as BLO supervisors.

The CEO’s office cautioned that assigning these officials to census work could hamper the revision exercise and requested that they be exempted from census duties.

The Revenue Department will serve as the nodal department for the census exercise.

“The communication is yet to be received. We will see what we can do,” a Revenue department official said.