Pune: Preparations for Census 2027 gather pace; officials told to ensure accurate house listing data

Pune, 24th March 2026: Resident Deputy Collector Jyoti Kadam on Tuesday reviewed the preparations for the Census 2027. In a meeting with the officials across the district via video conferencing, Kadam directed concerned officials to ensure accurate recording of house listing data ahead of the first phase of enumeration.

Rajat Mittal, district coordinator appointed by the Directorate of Census Operations, Maharashtra, briefed officials in detail and stressed that entries in the HLBC system must be accurate.

The Office of the Registrar General and Census Commissioner under the Union home ministry has accelerated pre-census preparations. The first phase — House Listing and Housing Census — is scheduled to be conducted from May 16 to June 14, 2026. Prior to this, a self-enumeration facility will be made available to citizens between May 1 and May 15.

Officials said for the first time, all registers — including rural, urban and charge registers — will be prepared through a digital system, with location-specific data pre-filled. The charge register will also include details related to the allocation of work to enumerators and supervisors, along with information on training allowances and honorarium.

During the meeting, it was emphasised that information related to on-ground conditions and the data entered in the HLBC system must be same while preparing house listing blocks. All charge officers and census coordinators have been instructed to exercise special caution in this regard.

It was also clarified that while defining a house listing block, the population of the concerned settlement should be at least 800.

In rural areas, tehsildars, naib tehsildars or block development officers will function as charge officers, while in urban areas, CEOs or municipal commissioners will handle the responsibility.