Soon to be most populous, India doesn’t know how many people it has

The UN has projected India’s population could touch 1,425,775,850 on April 14, overtaking China on that day. Representation pic/AFP

In two months, India is projected to become the world's most populous country with over 1.4 billion people. But, for at least a year, and possibly longer, the country won't know how many people it has because it hasn't been able to count them.

India's once in a decade census, due in 2021 and delayed due to the pandemic, has now got bogged down by technical and logistical hurdles and there are no signs the mammoth exercise is likely to begin soon. As per 2011 census, India's population stood at 1.21 billion.

Experts say the delay in updating data like employment, housing, literacy levels, migration patterns and infant mortality, which is captured by the census, affects social and economic planning and policymaking.

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Calling census data "indispensable", Rachna Sharma, a fellow at the National Institute of Public Finance and Policy, said studies like the consumption expenditure survey and the periodic labour force survey are estimations based on information from the census.

A senior official at the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation said census data from 2011, when the count was last conducted, was being used for projections and estimates required to assess government spending.

Two other government officials said the delay was largely due to the government's decision to fine-tune the census process and make it foolproof with the help of technology.

A home ministry official said the software, which will be used to gather census data on a mobile phone app, has to be synchronised with existing identity databases, including Aadhaar, which was taking time. The Congress and critics of PM Narendra Modi have accused the government of delaying the census to hide data on politically sensitive issues, such as unemployment, ahead of 2024 elections.

The UN has projected India's population could touch 1,425,775,850 on April 14. The 2011 census had put India's population at 1.21 billion.

2021
Year the census was to be held

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