Coronavirus update: Government puts Census 2021, NPR on hold in view of Covid-19

The first phase of Census 2021 and updation of NPR, which was to begin in April and May “are postponed until further orders” the ministry’s statement said.

Census 2021 and the updation of the National Population Register (NPR), a biometric database of all persons living in India, have both been put on hold indefinitely because of the Covid -19 pandemic, according to a statement from home ministry.

People in a queue to buy essentials from a grocery store during the first day of national lockdown to curb the spread of coronavirus, in New Delhi on Wednesday. (Sanchit Khanna/HT PHOTO)

The first phase of Census 2021 and updation of NPR, which was to begin in April and May “are postponed until further orders” the ministry’s statement said.

“Despite the delay because of Covid-19, the data will be available to the government faster than previous census,” a senior government official said.

Calling the NPR undesirable, experts said its postponement should not bother anyone. “The Census, on the other hand, is very important...Hopefully, the government will understand that it should drop the NPR entirely,” Professor Reetika Khera of the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad said.