New Delhi [India], April 10 (ANI): The Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India on Friday announced that more than 5.72 lakh households have availed of the self-enumeration facility for Census 2027 so far, reflecting growing participation in the country's first-ever digital census.

In a post on X, the Registrar General of India informed families choosing to provide their details online have adopted a faster, smarter and more convenient method of contributing to the national census exercise.

'More than 5.72 lakh households have availed of the Self-Enumeration facility so far, reflecting growing participation in the digital initiative of Census 2027. By choosing to provide their details online, these families have embraced a faster, smarter and more convenient way to contribute to nation-building,' it posted.

The self-enumeration facility for Phase I -- Houselisting and Housing Census (HLO) -- is currently underway in select states and Union Territories. Citizens in states where the window is open have been urged to self-enumerate through the official portal.

Census 2027 will be India's 16th census and the eighth since Independence. For the first time, citizens will have the option of self-enumeration through a digital platform. The census will be conducted in two phases.

Phase I covers Houselisting and Housing Census, being carried out over a period of 30 days across states and UTs between April and September 2026, with a 15-day self-enumeration window preceding the house-to-house enumeration work. In this phase, information about the condition of houses, amenities available to the household and assets possessed by the household will be collected. Questions of Phase I of the Census have been notified in January 2026.

Phase II-Population Enumeration (PE) will be conducted during February 2027 (UT of Ladakh and snow-bound non-synchronous areas of UT of Jammu and Kashmir and States of Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh Phase II will be conducted during September 2027.

As decided by the Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs (CCPA), enumeration of castes will also be done during the second phase of the Census. In phase II, information on demographic, socio-economic, education, migration, fertility, etc. will be collected from each individual. Exact dates of the Population Enumeration and questions to be covered in this Phase will be notified in due course.

Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Delhi (New Delhi Municipal Council and Delhi Cantonment Board), Goa, Karnataka, Lakshadweep, Mizoram, Odisha, and Sikkim will do the Houselisting and Housing Census from April 16 to May 15, along with a period of self-enumeration from April 1 to 15.

Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Chandigarh, Chhattisgarh, and Haryana will start Houselisting Census from May 1 to May 30, with a period of self-enumeration from April 16 to April 30. The government has come out with state-wise dates for houselisting and housing census.

The Union Government has approved an outlay of Rs 11,718.24 crore for Census 2027. (ANI)