NEW DELHI: The Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on Thursday clarified that Home Minister Amit Shah has, on more than one occasion, stated that the concerns of southern states will be addressed during the delimitation exercise and that the issue will be discussed with all stakeholders at an appropriate time.
Responding to Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin’s concerns over the Census-linked delimitation exercise, an MHA spokesperson said in a series of posts on X: “The Honourable Home Minister has made it clear on several occasions that in the delimitation exercise, concerns of southern states will be taken care of and will be discussed with all concerned at appropriate time.”
The spokesperson said the Census was originally scheduled for 2021 and all preparations were completed, but it had to be postponed due to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.
He added that the aftershocks of COVID-19 continued for a long time and disrupted many sectors, including education. Around 30 lakh enumerators are needed for the Census, and most of them are primary school teachers, who are key to the process.
Conducting the Census immediately after COVID-19, the spokesperson said, could have severely disrupted primary education. He also noted that countries that carried out their Census soon after the pandemic faced issues related to the quality and coverage of data.
The government has now decided to begin the Census process and complete it by March 1, 2027, which will be the reference date for most of the country.
He clarified that the budget has never been an issue for conducting the Census, as the government always ensures adequate funding.
India’s 16th Census, which will include caste enumeration, will be conducted in 2027. The reference date for snow-bound areas like Ladakh will be October 1, 2026, while for the rest of the country it will be March 1, 2027. The MHA said the Population Census 2027 will be carried out in two phases along with the caste count.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin had posted on X that the Constitution mandates delimitation must follow the first Census after 2026. He alleged that by delaying the Census to 2027, the BJP government was trying to reduce Tamil Nadu’s parliamentary representation.
“I had warned about this. It is now unfolding. By siding with the BJP, Palaniswami is not just silent but complicit in this betrayal. It’s now clear that he has surrendered to Delhi's domination,” the CM said. “The people of Tamil Nadu are united as one in their demand for a Fair Delimitation. We need clear answers from the Union Government.”
