Census of India

The decennial Census of India has been conducted 16 times, as of 2021. While it has been undertaken every 10 years, beginning in 1872 under British Viceroy Lord Mayo, the first complete census was taken in 1881.[1] Post 1949, it has been conducted by the Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India under the Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India. All the censuses since 1951 were conducted under the 1948 Census of India Act , which predates the Constitution of India.[2] The 1948 Census of India Act does not bind the Union Government to conduct the Census on a particular date or to release its data in a notified period. The last census was held in 2011, whilst the next was to be held in 2021. But it has been postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic in India.[3]

Historically, there has been a long time between collection of data and dissemination of data.[4] The taking of Census was a regular process in the Mauryan administration. The village officials (Gramika) and municipal officials (Nagarika) were responsible for enumerating different classes of people in the Mauryan empire such as traders, agriculturists, smiths, potters, carpenters etc., and also cattle, mostly for taxation purposes.[5] These vocations consolidated as castes, a feature of Indian society that continues to influence the Indian politics till today.