New Delhi: India’s decadal census, due in 2021, is set to begin in September, news agency Reuters has reported, citing anonymous government sources.
The population census was initially delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic; however, the Modi government has faced years of criticism for dragging its feet on the matter. This is the first time in its 150-year history that the decennial census has been delayed.
The exercise will take about 18 months to complete after it begins next month, two government sources directly involved in the matter told Reuters.
The delay in conducting the census has drawn criticism from economists, both within and outside the government, due to its impact on the accuracy of other statistical surveys. These include crucial data sets like economic indicators, inflation rates, and employment figures. Currently, many of these surveys and the government programmes that rely on them are based on data from the last population census conducted in 2011.
The Union home and statistics ministries have drawn up a timeline which suggests that the results will be related in March 2026. Although, the prime minister’s office is yet to give it an official go-ahead, the report said.
According to a United Nations report released last year, India overtook China as the world’s most populous nation last year. The home affairs and statistics ministries did not immediately respond to emailed requests for comment.
Fallouts of a delayed census
The lack of updated census data has delayed at least 15 other vital data sets related to health, demography and economy, in addition to affecting the quality of surveys by the National Sample Survey Office (NSSO).
Nearly 10 crore people have been left out of Public Distribution System (PDS) due to a lack of updated figures and the Modi government’s failure to conduct the 2021 census. “It is unfortunate that we are still stuck on the 80 crore figure from the last census because the 2021 census was never conducted. According to our laws, the National Food Security Act, 50% from urban and 75% population from rural areas must be covered under PDS. This is how the government arrived at the 80 crore figure back then. If the census were to be conducted today, nearly 10 crore people would get added as beneficiaries of PDS,” economist Reetika Khera said.
Other than food security, the lack of census data has also affected the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) as the Union government is meant to allocate funds to each state based on the number of households and labourers in the state.
State governments are also struggling to allocate funds for various schemes aimed at the development of SC/ST communities, old-age pension, and housing for the poor due to the absence of updated figures.
Under pressure to ensure that eligible beneficiaries are not left out of welfare schemes, state governments have been forced to spend money to generate their own data sets
“In a country like India, census data is very crucial as it helps understand the changes in demographic profile, sex ratio, migration, economic diversification of households and extent of urbanisation, among other things. Also, it is the census data that forms the basis or the frame for any sample survey to estimate poverty and inequality,” professor M. Vijayabaskar of the Madras Institute of Development Studies, told Deccan Herald.
