Daily current affairs · 19 August 2026
Census 2027 Population Enumeration Schedule Snow Bound Areas Ladakh
Why in news
- The Ministry of Home Affairs initiated the Population Enumeration phase of Census 2027 early in Ladakh and inaccessible high-altitude areas.
Information
- The Census of India is conducted decennially under the statutory provisions of the Census Act, 1948.
- Due to harsh weather and geographical isolation, snow-bound areas undergo enumeration earlier than the standard schedule for the rest of the country.
- The questionnaire records household demographic particulars including date of birth, religion, mother tongue, and exact parental birthplace.
- The collected data forms the statutory baseline for administrative planning, constituency delimitation, and fiscal devolution formulas under Finance Commissions.
Key terms
Population Enumeration
The secondary phase of the decennial census where individual demographic, social, and economic details are systematically recorded.
Census Act, 1948
The central legal framework governing the conduct, legal duties, and data confidentiality of the national census in India.
Prelims facts
- The Census is listed in the Union List (Entry 69) under the Seventh Schedule of the Indian Constitution.
- Individual responses collected under the Census Act, 1948 are legally confidential and inadmissible as court evidence.
Mains discussion
- Examine the socio-economic necessity of timely decennial census data for targeted welfare delivery and public policy planning.
Source: The Hindu