India’s 16th Census will be conducted by March 2027 as the nation’s first digital and caste-based enumeration. Learn about its phases, legal basis, and significance for delimitation and governance. India will conduct its next population census by March 1, 2027, after a historic 16-year gap, as announced by the Union Ministry of Home Affairs. This will be India’s first digital census and the first post-Independence census to include caste enumeration. This census marks a significant milestone: it will include the first nationwide caste enumeration since 1931. Notification under Section 3 of the Census Act, 1948, came out in the Gazette on Monday (June 16) with house-listing and housing enumeration running for several months before the population count begins in early 2027. The Government has announced Census 2027, India's first digital and caste-based population census, to be conducted in two phases from Oct 2026 to Mar 2027. It will collect comprehensive socio-economic, demographic, and caste data post-independence.
