Counting heads is expected to cost several times more in Census 2021 as compared to 2011 when the Census enumeration had pegged the country’s population at 121 crore. The Union Budget 2020 is expected to see an increased allocation for the largest enumeration exercise that will kick-start in April.
In 2011, the expenditure on census was Rs 2,200 crore. This time, the Union cabinet has cleared an allocation of Rs 13,000 crore for the Census 2021 and National Population Register (NPR) and the demands for grants for the same will be spread across Union budgets starting this year.
“The budget allocated for Census 2021 will be mainly spent during 2019-20, 2020-21 and 2021-22,” said a senior home ministry official. The 2019-20 budget had already allocated Rs 541.33 for census, survey and statistics head under the Registrar General of India.
Government sources said that in 2011, the census exercise was spread over two phases—the house-listing and housing census and the population enumeration.
A decade later, not only the cost of the enumeration exercise has gone up due to requirements for counting increased number of heads, but also the census exercise has transformed into the largest digital exercise to be undertaken by the government.
This time the census exercise is being spread over three phases that includes house-listing and housing census, population enumeration and the National Population Register .
What is important is that there is an increased focus on quality and accuracy this time.
As many as 30 lakh enumerators are being roped in and provided training by master trainers on how to use the mobile app, access the database to check the previous information given under the NPR head and update it accordingly .
They will be paid Rs 25,000 if they participate in all three phases and use the hand held devices to feed information into the mobile app that will be accessed by the census authorities and automatically become part of the digital central database.
Earlier, enumerators were paid around Rs 5,000 and there was also no way to find out whether they had paid a visit to each house and performed the exercise to the best of their ability. With the digital system in place for Census 2021, the enumerators will be better trained and well equipped, said an official adding that they may also be monitored since the mobile app they will carry will get activated once they reach their designated place.