New Delhi: An amount of ₹1,564 crore has been allocated for Census 2021 and related activities, which have been stalled for over three years because of the Covid-19 pandemic, in Union Budget 2023-24.
The allocation is less than half compared to last year’s Budget estimate for the Census exercise — ₹3,676 crore — but it was later revised to ₹552.65 crore. The amount is part of the overall Budget allocation of ₹1.96 lakh crore to the ministry of home affairs (MHA).
The allocation of ₹1,564.65 crore for the Census, Survey and Statistics/Registrar General of India (RGI), the Budget document says, “includes provisions for the office of the Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India and various schemes of RGI including National Population Register (NPR) and expenditure on Census, 2021”.
The Centre has repeatedly said that the decennial exercise has been delayed due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The exercise was previously extended from December 31, 2020 to December 21, 2021; and then for another six months each till December 2022.
Originally, the fieldwork of house-listing and housing Census, the first phase of Census 2021, along with the updating of National Population Register (NPR) was to be conducted in a period of 45 days during April 2020 to September 2020 in different states and UTs, depending on their local conditions and other priorities. After the house listing, the population enumeration was to be carried out between February 9 and 28, 2021.
Last month, the office of the Registrar General of India (RGI) wrote to all the states and Union territories informing them about extending the date for making changes to administrative boundaries till June-end.
Also Read: Freezing of boundaries may further delay Census 2021
During a Census operation – both the house-listing phase and the population enumeration — the states and Union territories are not supposed to change the boundaries of districts, towns, villages and tehsils.
The RGI’s letter to the states/UTs meant that the freezing of boundaries of administrative jurisdictions will take place on June 30.
According to the rules, the census exercise can begin only three months after freezing of administrative boundaries, effectively delaying the Census 2021 process till September this year.
