Context: The 2027 Census population enumeration questionnaire contains 40 questions, including several personal details such as Aadhaar, mobile, voter ID, passport and bank-account information.
- Concerns have been raised that some questions may have limited statistical utility, increase the burden on enumerators/respondents, and potentially affect the confidentiality and quality of Census data.
Census: Purpose and Principles
- Census: The United Nations defines a population census as the comprehensive process of collecting, processing, analysing and disseminating demographic, economic and social data at the smallest geographic level.
- The primary purpose is therefore to generate reliable statistics for policy, planning and public use.
- Confidentiality: The UN Fundamental Principles of Official Statistics require individual data collected for statistical purposes to remain strictly confidential and be used exclusively for statistical compilation; India has adopted these principles.
New Questions in Census 2027
The questionnaire seeks information on:
- Parents and spouses of household members, nationality as declared and permanent residential address.
- Place of COVID-19 vaccination.
- Number of bank accounts.
- Mobile, Aadhaar and Voter ID numbers, if available.
- Passport number for Indian passport holders and availability of a driving licence.
Concerns Regarding Names and Personal Details
- Census traditionally uses names primarily to identify individuals during enumeration; names have not formed part of India's computerised Census databases and are not required for statistical tabulation.
- Requiring names of all household members and their parents could create difficulties for hostels, old-age homes, prisons and other institutional households, as wardens/caretakers may not know complete family details.
- Students living away from their normal households, particularly towards the end of the academic year, may also create enumeration difficulties.
- Even ordinary households may not possess complete information about parents/grandparents living elsewhere.
COVID-19 Vaccination Data
- Asking for the place of COVID-19 vaccination may have limited current statistical utility because the major vaccination drive occurred several years earlier and routine vaccination has substantially declined after the pandemic.
- The usefulness of collecting this information therefore remains questionable.
Concerns Over Aadhaar, Mobile and Voter ID
- Mobile, Aadhaar and Voter ID numbers are sought “if available”, but the exact meaning of this phrase is unclear—whether the number must be available with the individual or with the respondent.
- In many households, respondents such as elderly persons or homemakers may not have the identification details of every member.
- Institutional households face an even greater difficulty because individuals may keep their documents at their permanent homes.
- These identifiers have little direct value for statistical tabulation beyond establishing their availability.
- Asking millions of enumerators to collect and accurately record such numbers could increase time, workload and data-entry errors.
- For visitors and domestic workers who qualify for enumeration at a household, obtaining their identification details may also be difficult.
Nationality: Limited Statistical Utility
- Nationality as declared may not accurately establish citizenship because persons residing illegally may declare themselves Indian nationals.
- A similar question was tried in the 1951 and 1961 Censuses but discontinued from 1971 onwards.
- The issue also has an international precedent: the U.S. Census excluded a citizenship question from the 2020 Census after extensive debate.
Bank Accounts
- The number of bank accounts per person could potentially generate statistics on the distribution of people by number of accounts.
- However, if the objective is simply to identify people without a bank account, asking a simpler yes/no question would be sufficient.
- Obtaining the exact number of accounts may be difficult, particularly when respondents are unwilling or unable to provide complete financial information.
- The Census therefore needs to balance the statistical value of the information against the burden and reliability of collection.
Census and National Population Register (NPR)
Why NPR is Relevant
- During preparations for the 2021 Census, there were proposals to update the National Population Register (NPR) alongside the Census, but several States opposed the exercise.
- Information such as parents' details, permanent address and nationality is particularly relevant to preparing/updating the NPR.
- The NPR is intended to form the basis for the National Register of Indian Citizens (NRIC/NRC).
Institutional and Legal Concern
- Census enumerators are appointed by State governments under Section 4(2) of the Census Act, 1948.
- Therefore, questions arise regarding whether States can refuse to deploy their staff for activities outside the Census exercise.
- The Citizenship Act does not specifically provide for a State government's role in preparing the NPR.
- The concern is that information collected through the Census could potentially be extracted and shared with another government body for NPR purposes.
- Such use could raise concerns regarding the confidentiality principle governing Census data.
- There is no inherent objection to preparing a population or citizen register, but such exercises should have a clear legal basis, transparent procedure and institutional separation from confidential Census data.
Length and Quality of the Questionnaire
- The 40-question questionnaire, with several descriptive questions repeated for each household member, could cause respondent fatigue.
- Fatigue may encourage respondents to provide casual or inaccurate answers, reducing data quality.
- Recording additional names and addresses substantially increases the workload of enumerators.
- Including questions with limited statistical utility may ultimately compromise the reliability of core Census data.
