India Launches Digital Census After 15-Year Gap, Includes Caste Count

India commenced the first phase of its 16th decennial population census on April 1, 2026, marking the nation's most extensive enumeration since 2011. This monumental exercise, dubbed "Census 2027" due to its projected completion next year, will be the first fully digital census, employing mobile applications and a self-enumeration portal for citizens. Crucially, it reintroduces comprehensive caste enumeration, a practice last seen in 1931. The census, delayed for five years by the COVID-19 pandemic and administrative hurdles, aims to update critical demographic, socio-economic, and housing data for over 1.4 billion people. The initial phase focuses on house listing, with population enumeration scheduled for February 2027.