New Delhi, Jun 5 (PTI) The Population Fund of India on Thursday welcomed the 16th Census and called for "strong safeguards" to ensure that the count is "inclusive, accurate, and equity-focused."
The Population Census-2027 with caste enumeration will be carried out in 2027 with the reference date of October 1, 2026, in snow-bound areas like Ladakh and on March 1, 2027, in the rest of the country.
It has been decided to conduct the census in two phases, along with the enumeration of castes, the Union Home Ministry announced on Wednesday.
"The Population Foundation of India welcomes the announcement of India's upcoming Census in 2027 – set to be the first fully digital enumeration exercise – and calls for strong safeguards to ensure that the count is inclusive, accurate, and equity-focused," the non-government organisation said in a statement.
It also "strongly" supported the inclusion of "caste-disaggregated data" in the census, saying, "Caste shapes access to health, education, and employment, but remains invisible in national datasets. We cannot build inclusive policies if we do not measure exclusion."
The outfit's executive director, Poonam Muttreja, said the upcoming census is not just about counting people but correcting the course as well.
"Development planning has been constrained for over a decade by outdated data. We have a critical opportunity now to ensure that the Census reflects the lived realities of all Indians, especially marginalised communities," she said.
"This Census is essential for aligning public investment with real needs, especially in underserved districts and growing urban peripheries," she added.
Muttreja said the move to a digital census is a "major innovation," but it also raises "risks of exclusion" for rural and marginalised households.
"Many face barriers in digital access, literacy, and language. Population Foundation cautions that if digital self-enumeration becomes the norm without adequate safeguards, it could reinforce undercounting of precisely those left behind," she said.
"Marginalised groups must not become data shadows in a digital-first approach. The government must retain in-person enumeration where needed and invest in socially diverse, trained enumerator teams," she added.
Muttreja also called for gender-sensitive design and implementation of census tools. "Historically, women's data has been underreported, especially in self-enumeration formats led by male household members," it said.