The government is set to conduct the much-delayed Census next year, and to complete the process by 2026, with suggestions being taken on whether caste enumeration would be part of the exercise, as per sources.
About the Census
- Conducted By: Office of the Registrar General and Census Commissioner under Ministry of Home Affairs.
- Largest Statistical Exercise Globally: Collects data on demography, literacy, housing, urbanization, SC/ST status, religion, etc.
- Legal Framework:
- Constitutional Status: The population census is a Union subject under Article 246 of the Constitution, listed at serial number 69 of the seventh schedule of the constitution.
- The Census of India Act of 1948: The Act provides the legal framework for carrying out the Census
- Neither the Constitution nor the Act provides the frequency and periodicity to conduct the census exercise.
- There is, therefore, no Constitutional or legal requirement that a Census has to be done every 10 years.
- History: The Census exercise was carried out for the first time in a synchronised manner in 1881 after a trail exercise in 1872 under Viceroy Lord Mayo
- Since the the Census exercise has been conducted every 10 years till the 2021 census was postponed ( first time in the 150-year history of India’s census operations)
- The first complete census of India was conducted in 1830 by Henry Walter in Dacca (now Dhaka).
- Phases:
- House-listing and Housing Census: Lists structures, households, amenities.
- Population Enumeration: Collects individual data on demographics, socio-economic status.
- Process: Data collection through household visits, confidential processing at data centers with ICR software.
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Significance of Current Census
- The upcoming Census is linked to two other important outcomes
- the delimitation of Parliamentary constituencies, which has been on hold for the last five decades, and
- the implementation of women’s reservation in Parliament.
- There is also an expectation that the next Census may collect caste data as well to eliminate the need for a separate caste census, which has been demanded by some political parties in recent years.
Importance of Census
Provide the facts essential to the government for policy-making, planning and administration.
- Provides important data for the analysis and appraisal of the changing patterns of rural/urban movement and concentration, the development of urbanised areas, geographical distribution of the population according to such variables as occupation and education, as well as the socio-economic characteristics of the population and the labour force.
- Aids in the decision-making processes of the private sector.
- Population size and characteristics influence the location of businesses and services that satisfy the needs of the target population.
- Population censuses also constitute the principal source of records for use as a sampling frame for the household surveys during the years between censuses.
National Population Register (NPR)
- The National Population Register (NPR) is a Register of usual residents of the country.
- It is being prepared at the local (Village/sub-Town), sub-District, District, State and National level under provisions of the Citizenship Act 1955 and the Citizenship (Registration of Citizens and issue of National Identity Cards) Rules, 2003.
- It is mandatory for every usual resident of India to register in the NPR.
- A usual resident is defined for the purposes of NPR as a person who has resided in a local area for the past 6 months or more or a person who intends to reside in that area for the next 6 months or more.
- The objective of the NPR is to create a comprehensive identity database of every usual resident in the country. The database would contain demographic as well as biometric particulars.
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Challenges associated with Census
- Cost: Conducting a census is expensive, and the government incurs thousands of crores of rupees in the process.
- Literacy: In countries with high illiteracy rates, it can be difficult to conduct a census.
- Infrastructure: Poor infrastructure, such as inaccessible roads, can make it difficult to conduct a census.
- Cultural and linguistic barriers: Language diversity and cultural variations can make it difficult to communicate with and collect data from diverse groups.
- Privacy and confidentiality: Concerns about data misuse, identity theft, and violation of privacy rights can make it difficult to gain the trust of respondents.
- Rapid urbanisation and migration: The increasing pace of urbanisation and internal migration can make it difficult to accurately count and track individuals.
- Technological and infrastructure limitations: Limited access to digital devices and connectivity issues can make it difficult to adopt digital data collection methods.
- Lack of community participation: Inadequate community participation can make it difficult to conduct a census.
- Inadequate training of enumerators: Inadequate training of enumerators can make it difficult to collect precise and accurate data.
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About Delimitation of Constituencies
- Delimitation of Constituencies means the act or process of fixing limits or boundaries of territorial constituencies in a country or a province having a legislative body.
- The job of delimitation is assigned to a body- known as Delimitation Commission or a Boundary Commission.
- Delimitation Commissions have been set up four times — 1952, 1963, 1973 and 2002 under the Acts of 1952, 1962, 1972 and 2002.
- The 87th Amendment Act of 2003 provided for the delimitation of constituencies on the basis of the 2001 census.
Delimitation Commission & Its Composition
- The Delimitation Commission is assigned with the responsibility of delineating and revising the boundaries of various constituencies for state assembly and Lok Sabha elections.
- Appointment : By the President of India & works in collaboration with the Election Commission of India.
- Members : A retired Supreme Court Judge (chairperson), Chief Election Commissioner & Respective State Election Commissioners.
- Absolute Power : Its orders have the force of law and cannot be called in question before any court.
- Its orders are laid before the Lok Sabha and the concerned legislative assemblies but no modifications are permissible therein by them.
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October 29, 2024
