Amit Shah Launches Mascots For India's First 2027 Digital Census

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday soft launched a set of digital platforms and unveiled two mascots for Census 2027, marking the start of preparations for what will be the world's largest population exercise.

The mascots, named Pragati and Vikas, represent female and male enumerators and are meant to highlight equal participation of women and men in the national exercise as India works towards its goal of becoming a developed country by 2047.

Officials said the upcoming census will be conducted in two phases and will be the first time that the nationwide exercise will be carried out using digital tools. For the first time, citizens will also have the option of self enumeration through a secure web based portal where they can submit their household details online in 16 languages before the door to door survey begins.

The Centre for Development of Advanced Computing, or Centre for Development of Advanced Computing, has developed the digital platforms that will support the enumeration process across the country.

Four key digital systems were introduced during the launch. These include the Houselisting Block Creator web application that allows officials to create houselisting blocks using satellite imagery, the HLO mobile application that enables enumerators to collect and upload field data through smartphones, the Self Enumeration portal for citizens to submit their information online, and the Census Management and Monitoring System that will allow authorities to track progress of the exercise in real time.

The government had formally announced its intent to conduct the next census through a gazette notification issued on June 16, 2025. The nationwide exercise will be carried out in two stages.

The first phase, known as the Houselisting and Housing Census, will gather details on housing conditions and household amenities. This phase will be conducted between April 1 and September 30, with each state and union territory carrying out the survey during a 30 day period notified locally. An optional 15 day window for self enumeration will be provided before the door to door survey begins.

The second phase will involve population enumeration and will capture demographic, social and economic information of every individual. This phase is scheduled to be carried out across the country in February 2027.

For the Union Territory of Ladakh and snow bound areas of Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand, the population enumeration will be conducted earlier in September due to weather conditions.

Officials said more than 30 lakh enumerators, supervisors and other personnel will be deployed across the country to carry out the census, which will rely heavily on mobile applications and digital monitoring systems to ensure accuracy and full coverage.