Final questionnaire for Census phase, which will enumerate caste, likely next week
The Indian government is set to finalize the questionnaire for the 2027 Population Census, which will include the first-ever caste enumeration in independent India. The exercise will begin in remote areas in August 2026 before expanding nationwide in 2027.
Why it matters
Caste enumeration is a highly sensitive and significant policy shift in India that impacts social welfare and political representation.
The questions for the second phase of the Population Census 2027 are likely to be notified next week, days before the exercise, which will reveal how caste is to be enumerated in independent India, begins on August 17 in Ladakh and snow-bound areas of Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand, ahead of the rest of the country where the exercise is to be held in February 2027.
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