First Phase of Census 2027 Operations Concludes Across Tamil Nadu

The first phase of the Census of India 2027, comprising house listing and housing census operations, has concluded across Tamil Nadu, officials announced on Monday in Chennai.

The month-long field exercise commenced on August 1 and wrapped up on August 30 across all urban and rural administrative divisions in the state. Prior to the on-ground survey, authorities opened a self-enumeration window between July 17 and July 31, during which more than 10 lakh households submitted their details digitally through the official Census web portal.

To ensure complete geographic coverage, Tamil Nadu deployed a workforce of over 1.15 lakh enumerators and 19,000 supervisors. The personnel covered nearly 1.2 lakh house listing blocks across 1,026 administrative charges throughout the state.

The exercise marked a shift to a fully digital process. Field workers used a secure mobile application for real-time data capture, geo-tagging, and direct transmission to servers, replacing manual paper schedules.

During the initial phase, enumerators mapped residential structures and collected information across 33 key indicators. These metrics tracked housing durability, asset ownership, and access to basic civic amenities, including drinking water, electricity, sanitation, kitchen facilities, and digital connectivity.

The Directorate of Census Operations, Tamil Nadu, acknowledged the efforts of the field workforce, district administrations, civic bodies, and the public. Officials noted that under the Census Act, 1948, and the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, all collected data remains strictly confidential and will be used solely for developmental planning and statistical analysis.

The decennial exercise will move into its second phase, population enumeration, in February 2027. That stage will record demographic, socio-economic, and educational profiles for every resident.