Digital Census 2027: Gujarat Pioneers India's First Digital Houselisting Exercise

Gujarat has become the first state in India to launch the digital houselisting exercise for the 16th Population Census, scheduled for 2027. This marks a transformative shift in India’s demographic data collection, transitioning from traditional paper-based methods to a robust digital framework. The exercise involves over one lakh enumerators who will collect data on 33 distinct parameters, including housing conditions, household assets, and access to basic amenities like drinking water and electricity. The adoption of a digital platform is a significant leap for e-governance in India. By utilizing mobile applications and dedicated portals, the government aims to ensure higher data accuracy, minimize manual entry errors, and drastically reduce the time lag between data collection and publication. This real-time data synchronization allows for better monitoring of the enumeration process and ensures that the final demographic profile is more reflective of the current ground reality.