Meghalaya has emerged as one of the first northeastern states where field operations under Phase I of Census 2027 have officially begun, marking a major step in the Centre’s push towards a fully digital census exercise across the country. The House listing and Housing Census (HLO) operations have commenced in Meghalaya along with Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Jharkhand and the Municipal Corporation of Delhi area, according to the Ministry of Home Affairs. The exercise forms part of the wider nationwide Census 2027 process, which is being conducted using digital tools for the first time while continuing the traditional door-to-door survey method.
Arunachal Pradesh is also among the states where house-to-house house listing operations by enumerators are currently underway. Officials said enumerators are visiting households with a dedicated mobile application to digitally collect information related to housing conditions, family details, amenities and household assets. The northeastern region has already seen progress in the initial phase of the exercise. Mizoram and Sikkim completed their house listing and housing census operations conducted between April 16 and May 15. The Centre views the early participation of northeastern states as significant, particularly in ensuring coverage of remote and geographically difficult areas.
Authorities said the census process is designed to improve “evidence-based planning and implementation of welfare and development programmes”. During field visits, enumerators are collecting responses through a structured questionnaire containing 33 notified questions. The Ministry of Home Affairs stated that more than 1.44 crore households across 25 states and Union Territories have already completed self-enumeration through the official portal. The self-enumeration facility, introduced for the first time in census operations, is being described as a major move towards digitization.