India Announces Questions for 2027 Caste Census

India's Registrar General, the office responsible for overseeing the national census, has notified the Household Questionnaire that will be used for Census 2027, marking the second phase of the government's plan to conduct a caste census.

The census, a nationwide exercise normally undertaken once every ten years, is designed to record demographic, social and economic data about every resident of the country. For 2027, the questionnaire will for the first time formally incorporate caste-related questions across the general population, extending beyond earlier limited caste counts.

Under the notified Household Questionnaire, enumerators will ask households to provide a range of personal identifiers in addition to standard demographic information. These reportedly include Aadhaar numbers, the biometric-linked identity numbers issued to Indian residents, along with mobile phone numbers and bank account details.

The data will be gathered during population enumeration, the operational phase in which government-appointed enumerators visit households directly to record responses. Combining caste data with linked identifiers such as Aadhaar and banking information is expected to give authorities a more detailed and traceable dataset than previous censuses.

This notification follows an earlier announcement of the first phase of the caste census process and represents a concrete procedural step toward implementation. Officials involved in the exercise have indicated that the expanded data collection is intended to support more precise policy-making, particularly regarding welfare schemes that are often linked to caste-based eligibility criteria.

However, the inclusion of sensitive financial and identity information within a caste-focused census has attracted attention from commentators, who note that combining such personal data raises questions about data privacy and security, even as it may improve administrative efficiency. The government has yet to detail specific safeguards for how the collected information will be stored or used.

The full rollout of the questionnaire and the exact schedule for the enumeration phase have not been specified in the current notification, leaving further procedural details expected to be announced closer to the census date.