Houselisting and Housing Census, which constitutes the first phase of the nationwide Census 2027, is expected to be held in Kerala over the course of one month any time between April and September in 2026.
The Joint Director, Census Operations (Kerala), has forwarded a detailed proposal to the State government with respect to the preliminary arrangements for the mammoth exercise. The first phase will be followed by Phase II – Population Enumeration – in February 2027.
“The first phase will be conducted during the course of one month recommended by the State government during the prescribed April-September period,” a senior official at the Census Directorate said. Normally, teachers are deployed for the Census, and this time also, this is the plan. But the numbers have not been finalised yet, the official said.
Houselisting and Housing Census is meant to collect useful data on the “quantity and quality of housing, availability of amenities and assets in households besides providing an unambiguous frame for enumeration,” according to Census officials.
The State government has given its nod to proposals concering the appointment of Census functionaries. The notifications regarding the appointment of Census officers and their functions and responsibilities will be issued in due course.
Divisions
For the conduct of the mammoth exercise, the Directorate of Census Operations (Kerala) has proposed a “graduated break-up of the entire State into a pyramid of territorial justidictions.” The primary break-up will be on the basis of the revenue districts. “Each district will be divided into urban and rural areas. The Municipal Corporations, Municipal Towns, Cantonment Boards and those areas as approved as Census Towns and Outgrowths will constitute urban area; the rest will form the rural area,” a December 23 order issued by the State government’s General Administration Department, based on the proposals of the directorate, said.
The Director of Census Operations is designated as the Chief Principal Census Officer for the exercise. In the districts, the District Collector concerned will be the Principal Census Officer.
The ‘pre-test’ for Census 2027 in Kerala was held in sample areas in Ernakulam, Idukki and Palakkad districts in November.
The Union government had in June this year announced plans for conducting the Population Census – 2027 in two phases along with the enumeration of castes. The previous Census, held in 2011, also came in two phases. Phase 1 lasted from April 1, 2010, to September 30, 2010 , and Population Enumeration, which constituted Phase II, was held from February 9 to February 28, 2011.
The decennial exercise, which should have been held in 2021 after 2011, has been delayed. Census 2011 had placed Kerala’s population at a little over 3.34 crore.
Published – December 29, 2025 07:27 pm IST
