Digital Census Begins In Maharashtra As Self-Enumeration Phase Kicks Off May 1

Mumbai: Maharashtra will begin the self-enumeration phase of the Census from May 1, marking the rollout of India’s first fully digital population count, officials said on Thursday. The initiative is being positioned as a major step towards technology-driven governance, aimed at improving accuracy and efficiency in data collection.

Nirupama Dange, Chief Principal Census Officer and Director of Census

Operations for Maharashtra, said the exercise introduces mobile applications and an online portal to enable real-time data submission. Citizens choosing to self-enumerate can complete the process between May 1 and May 15 using the official portal.

Officials have urged residents to use only the authorised website—[https://e.census.gov.in—and](https://e.census.gov.in—and) to avoid responding to suspicious messages. They cautioned that any official SMS communication related to the Census will contain the keyword “RGICEN”.

Following the self-enumeration phase, the house listing and housing Census will be conducted from May 16 to June 14. During this period, trained enumerators will carry out door-to-door visits, typically covering eight to ten households daily, preferably during morning or evening hours.

Once individuals submit their details online, they will receive an 11-digit unique identification number starting with the letter ‘H’. Authorities have advised citizens to preserve this number and share it with enumerators during verification visits.

To ensure administrative consistency, the state government has frozen jurisdictional boundaries of districts, talukas, cities and villages from January 1, 2026, to March 31, 2027. A gazette notification in this regard was issued on July 15, 2025, followed by another notification on February 26, 2026, to operationalise the Census process.

A large workforce of approximately 2.64 lakh personnel—including enumerators and supervisors—has been mobilised for the exercise. An additional 10 per cent reserve staff has also been kept on standby. All personnel have undergone training to handle digital tools and field operations efficiently.

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Officials said the Census Monitoring and Management System portal will be used for large-scale supervision, data validation and management. Enumeration will be conducted across both slum and non-slum areas using pre-defined maps to ensure comprehensive coverage.

Special provisions have also been made for migratory populations, who will be counted at their place of work under the “de facto” method. Authorities clarified that Census data is collected at the household level and does not serve as a legal document.

The final phase of the exercise, involving ward-wise population enumeration and detailed data consolidation, will be carried out next year, completing the transition to a fully digital Census framework.

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