It is now largely taken as fact in the international community that India is the world's most populous country. According to 2024 data from the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), India's population stands at about 1.441 billion. But that is an estimate. The actual number has not been surveyed since 2011.
The Indian government will conduct an official nationwide census for the first time in 15 years. It is a massive project mobilizing 3 million civil servants and a budget totaling $1.24 billion (about 1.88 trillion won). The Indian outlet Hindustan Times called it "the most precise and extensive census in history."
Through this survey, India is signaling its intent to end the "era of guesswork" and be reborn as a modern state grounded in accurate social data. In past censuses, all data were recorded on paper and then transcribed into digital documents. That process caused many errors and took quite some time. This census will attempt a full-scale digital transformation for the first time in India's history. Some 3 million civil servants assigned to the survey will travel across India for one year through Mar. 2027 to verify, using tablet PCs and a dedicated app, each individual among the population estimated at more than 1.4 billion.
The Indian government plans to actively use digital technology to collect data via a smartphone app, supplementing with paper forms only when strictly necessary. It expects this to enable far faster and more accurate statistics than before. It has also greatly expanded a self-registration method in which people log on to an online site and enter their information. The idea is to minimize data omissions and drastically shorten the tabulation time. On the day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Droupadi Murmu took part in self-registration themselves and called for nationwide participation.
Reuters said, "This colossal task will be a test of how successfully India has transplanted its information and communications technology capabilities into governance." The precise data collected in this way are expected to play a decisive role in attracting investment from foreign corporations and in forecasting economic growth rates.
This census is not merely about recounting the population. For the first time in roughly 100 years, the Indian government will include full caste data in the survey. Since 1931 under British colonial rule, India had avoided a comprehensive caste survey out of concern for social conflict. This time, however, it plans to examine the detailed class composition, including Other Backward Classes (OBC). OBCs are a broad group of socially disadvantaged classes that occupy a relatively unfavorable position in the traditional caste hierarchy. The Indian outlet Times of India noted that they have long been the beneficiaries of various affirmative action policies in education, employment, and politics, and predicted, "If the size of a particular caste group turns out to be larger than expected, demands from various other forces for political representation and expanded welfare could grow uncontrollably."
Because this work reopens the oldest status order in Indian society, some analysis suggests the survey could become a major political flashpoint beyond simple statistics. The results will lead to redistricting of constituencies for the Lok Sabha and state assemblies. Adjusting constituencies is more than changing seat numbers; it is a key variable that can determine whether a particular party stays in power long-term and how power is balanced among regions.
Northern India recorded a higher population growth rate compared with 2011, the time of the last census. Their number of seats is highly likely to increase significantly starting with the next election that reflects the census results. By contrast, the southern region, which has successfully curbed population growth, is concerned its political representation may be weakened. This is a sensitive issue that could disrupt regional sentiments and the balance among political forces within India. The bill reserving 33% of seats for women, which passed India's Parliament in 2023, also cannot be applied to actual elections until this census is completed.