Population Enumeration (Phase 2)

What population enumeration is

Population Enumeration records every person in India — resident, visitor, houseless — against a single reference moment, so the count describes one instant rather than a months-long blur. Enumerators revisit every household listed in Phase 1 and record each member's details on the census app; a revisional round in early March 2027 adjusts for births and deaths around the reference date.

The 40 questions

The Household Schedule notified on August 14, 2026 carries 40 questions — up from 29 in Census 2011, with 13 new items. It covers demographics (name, sex, date of birth, marital status), religion, mother tongue and other languages, literacy and education, economic activity, migration and fertility. For the first time since 1931, caste enumeration is included for the full population — a decision taken by the Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs on April 30, 2025. The schedule also includes new fields such as Aadhaar number, voter ID, mobile number and bank-account status. Every question is explained on our questionnaire pages; for the implications of the caste count, see castecensus2027.com — this site covers the mechanics only.

Snow-bound areas go first

The UT of Ladakh (in full), snow-bound parts of 16 of Jammu & Kashmir's 20 districts, and designated areas of Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand cannot be reached in a February winter. Their Phase 2 therefore runs early: self-enumeration ran August 17–31, 2026, field enumeration runs September 1–30, 2026, and their reference date is 00:00 hrs, October 1, 2026. Their houselisting was completed early (April–May 2026) for the same reason.

February 2027 for everyone else

For the rest of India, enumeration is scheduled for February 2027 — the precise field dates within February will be notified by the RGI — with the reference date of 00:00 hrs on March 1, 2027, the 'Census Moment'. A fresh self-enumeration window will open before field work begins. This page will carry the exact dates, per state, the day they are announced; subscribe below to be notified.