The enumeration exercise for the Houselisting and Housing Census (HLO), constituting Phase I of Census 2027, will begin from Thursday in eight States and Union Territories along with the New Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC) area and Delhi Cantonment Board in the national capital territory.
States and UTs where the field operations will roll out include, Karnataka, Lakshadweep, Mizoram, Odisha, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Goa, and Sikkim, the Ministry of Home Affairs said on Wednesday. It follows the conclusion of the 15-day self-enumeration period where individuals were encouraged for the first time to fill details sought on the website (se.census.gov.in).
The HLO exercise will be carried out over a 30 days till May 15, 2026 by trained enumerators who will undertake house-to-house visits for data collection.
The self-enumeration (SE) facility introduced for the first time in Census has received an encouraging response from the public. As part of the digital approach adopted for Census 2027, so far around 12 lakh households have successfully availed self-enumeration facility through the official portal, informed the Minstry.
The initiative marks a significant milestone in digitising Census operations and has been widely appreciated for offering flexibility, convenience and ease of participation.
The MHA requested residents who have completed self-enumeration to keep their generated SE-ID ready and share the same with the enumerator during the field visit to complete the HLO process. Households that have not opted for SE will be covered during the physical house-to-house visit by enumerators.
During the Houselisting and Housing Census phase, enumerators will collect information relating to housing conditions, household details, amenities available and assets possessed by the households through a structured questionnaire comprising 33 notified questions. This phase of the Census forms an essential foundation for evidence-based planning and formulation of welfare and development programmes.
phase 2
In the next phase of rollout, the self-enumeration facility will commence from April 16, 2026, in Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Haryana, Chandigarh, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, and will remain available till April 30, 2026. The corresponding house-to-house Houselisting Operations in these States/UTs will be conducted from May 1 to May 30, 2026.
Further, in Bihar, the 15-day self-enumeration period will commence from April 17, 2026 and continue till May 1, 2026, followed by field operations from May 2 to May 31, 2026.
Published on April 15, 2026