UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — Field Operations for Houselisting and Housing Census Commences in Himachal Pradesh; Self-Enumeration Begins in Kerala and Nagaland

Q1. Which one of the following is the nodal body that operationalises the field execution of Census 2027, including the Houselisting and Housing Operation that commenced in Himachal Pradesh in June 2026?

  • A. Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner of India, Ministry of Home Affairs
  • B. National Statistical Office, Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation
  • C. Central Statistics Office, NITI Aayog
  • D. Directorate of Census Operations, Ministry of Panchayati Raj

Q2. The Census Rules, which along with the Census Act, 1948 form the legal framework for the conduct of Census in India, were notified by the Central Government in which year?

  • A. 1948
  • B. 1971
  • C. 1990
  • D. 2004

Q3. With reference to the constitutional and legal framework governing the conduct of Census in India, consider the following statements: 1. Census is enumerated in the Concurrent List of the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution, enabling both Union and State legislatures to legislate on it. 2. The Office of the Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India functions under the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation. 3. The Census Act, 1948 empowers only the Central Government to conduct the Census in India. 4. Census questionnaires are notified by the Central Government in the Official Gazette under Rule 6 of the Census Rules, 1990 read with Section 8 of the Census Act, 1948. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. Census is enumerated in the Concurrent List of the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution, enabling both Union and State legislatures to legislate on it.
  2. The Office of the Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India functions under the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation.
  3. The Census Act, 1948 empowers only the Central Government to conduct the Census in India.
  4. Census questionnaires are notified by the Central Government in the Official Gazette under Rule 6 of the Census Rules, 1990 read with Section 8 of the Census Act, 1948.
  • A. 1 and 3 only
  • B. 2 and 4 only
  • C. 3 and 4 only
  • D. 1, 2 and 4 only

Q4. With reference to Census 2027, which one of the following authorities is solely responsible for operationalising the digital data collection, including the mobile application and the Self-Enumeration portal?

  • A. National Statistical Office under the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation
  • B. National Informatics Centre under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology
  • C. Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner of India under the Ministry of Home Affairs
  • D. Unique Identification Authority of India under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology

Q5. With reference to Census 2027 and how it differs from earlier Indian censuses, consider the following statements: 1. It is the first Indian census to use a mobile application for direct field-to-server data capture, dispensing with paper schedules. 2. It is the first Indian census to provide an optional Self-Enumeration web facility through which a household member can submit details online before the enumerator's visit. 3. Unlike earlier censuses, Self-Enumeration in Census 2027 mandates uploading of identity and address documents on the portal before a Self-Enumeration ID is generated. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. It is the first Indian census to use a mobile application for direct field-to-server data capture, dispensing with paper schedules.
  2. It is the first Indian census to provide an optional Self-Enumeration web facility through which a household member can submit details online before the enumerator's visit.
  3. Unlike earlier censuses, Self-Enumeration in Census 2027 mandates uploading of identity and address documents on the portal before a Self-Enumeration ID is generated.
  • A. 1 and 2 only
  • B. 2 and 3 only
  • C. 1 and 3 only
  • D. 1, 2 and 3

Q6. With reference to the decision to include caste enumeration in Census 2027, consider the following statements: Which of the above statements is/are NOT correct?

  1. The decision to enumerate caste was approved by the Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs in April 2025.
  2. Comprehensive caste enumeration will be carried out during Phase-II (Population Enumeration) of Census 2027.
  3. Census 2027 will be the first Census to enumerate caste for all individuals since 1931.
  4. Every decadal Census conducted in India since Independence has collected caste data for all individuals, irrespective of whether they belong to Scheduled Castes or Scheduled Tribes.
  • A. 4 only
  • B. 1 and 4
  • C. 2 and 3
  • D. 3 only

Q7. With reference to the caste enumeration to be conducted in Census 2027 in comparison with the Socio-Economic and Caste Census (SECC) of 2011, consider the following statements: Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. SECC 2011 was conducted by the Ministry of Rural Development (along with the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs for urban areas), whereas Census 2027 is being conducted by the Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner of India under the Ministry of Home Affairs.
  2. Unlike SECC 2011, whose caste data was published in detail soon after fieldwork, the caste data collected under Census 2027 will not be made public.
  3. SECC 2011 was conducted as a separate survey outside the decennial Census framework, while caste enumeration in 2027 will be integrated within the decennial Census conducted under the Census Act, 1948.
  • A. 1 only
  • B. 1 and 2 only
  • C. 1 and 3 only
  • D. 1, 2 and 3

Q8. With reference to the conduct of the Census of India, which one of the following is the implementing authority that operationalises field enumeration and tabulation?

  • A. Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner of India under the Ministry of Home Affairs
  • B. National Statistical Office under the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation
  • C. Central Statistics Office under NITI Aayog
  • D. Directorate General of Vital Statistics under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare

Q9. With reference to the early history of the Census of India, consider the following statements: 1. The first attempt to enumerate the population of India, conducted between 1865 and 1872, took place during the tenure of Viceroy Lord Mayo and was non-synchronous in nature. 2. The first synchronous census of India was conducted on 17 February 1881 under W.C. Plowden, Census Commissioner of India. 3. The decennial tradition of the Indian Census, by which an enumeration is conducted once every ten years, began with the 1872 census and has continued without break ever since. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. The first attempt to enumerate the population of India, conducted between 1865 and 1872, took place during the tenure of Viceroy Lord Mayo and was non-synchronous in nature.
  2. The first synchronous census of India was conducted on 17 February 1881 under W.C. Plowden, Census Commissioner of India.
  3. The decennial tradition of the Indian Census, by which an enumeration is conducted once every ten years, began with the 1872 census and has continued without break ever since.
  • A. 1 and 2 only
  • B. 2 and 3 only
  • C. 1 and 3 only
  • D. 1, 2 and 3

Q10. With reference to the uses of Census population data in Indian governance, consider the following: 1. Allocation of seats in the Lok Sabha among the States under Article 81 of the Constitution. 2. Reservation of seats for the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in the Lok Sabha and State Legislative Assemblies under Articles 330 and 332. 3. Horizontal devolution of the divisible pool of Union taxes among States as recommended by the Finance Commission. 4. Inclusion of a caste in the Central List of Other Backward Classes by the National Commission for Backward Classes. Which of the above are correctly identified as governance functions that use Census population data as a statutory basis?

  1. Allocation of seats in the Lok Sabha among the States under Article 81 of the Constitution.
  2. Reservation of seats for the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in the Lok Sabha and State Legislative Assemblies under Articles 330 and 332.
  3. Horizontal devolution of the divisible pool of Union taxes among States as recommended by the Finance Commission.
  4. Inclusion of a caste in the Central List of Other Backward Classes by the National Commission for Backward Classes.
  • A. 1 and 2 only
  • B. 3 and 4 only
  • C. 1, 2 and 3 only
  • D. 1, 2, 3 and 4

Q11. With reference to how Census data has been used by successive constitutional and statutory bodies in India, consider the following statements: 1. Until the publication of the first Census taken after the year 2026, the total number of seats allotted to each State in the Lok Sabha remains frozen on the basis of the 1971 Census. 2. The Fifteenth Finance Commission, unlike its predecessor, used the 1971 Census population exclusively as the basis for inter-se distribution of the divisible pool among States. 3. Under the Delimitation Act, 2002, every readjustment of constituencies must necessarily be carried out using the population figures of the most recent decennial Census, regardless of whether those figures have been published. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. Until the publication of the first Census taken after the year 2026, the total number of seats allotted to each State in the Lok Sabha remains frozen on the basis of the 1971 Census.
  2. The Fifteenth Finance Commission, unlike its predecessor, used the 1971 Census population exclusively as the basis for inter-se distribution of the divisible pool among States.
  3. Under the Delimitation Act, 2002, every readjustment of constituencies must necessarily be carried out using the population figures of the most recent decennial Census, regardless of whether those figures have been published.
  • A. 1 only
  • B. 1 and 2 only
  • C. 2 and 3 only
  • D. 1, 2 and 3

Q12. In the context of India's Census 2027, the 'Houselisting and Housing Operation' (Phase-I) is best described as which one of the following?

  • A. A door-to-door enumeration that records housing conditions, amenities available and assets possessed by every household
  • B. An enumeration of every individual's demographic, migration and fertility particulars within each household
  • C. A nationwide caste enumeration of all individuals, the first such exercise since the Census of 1931
  • D. A pre-test exercise conducted to validate the digital census mobile application prior to national rollout

Q13. With reference to the two phases of India's Census 2027, consider the following statements: 1. The Houselisting and Housing Operation captures details of amenities available and assets possessed by households, whereas Population Enumeration captures demographic, socio-economic and migration particulars of every individual. 2. Caste of every individual will be enumerated during the Houselisting and Housing Operation phase, and not during the Population Enumeration phase. 3. Phase-I is conducted over a 30-day window in each State/UT between April and September 2026, while Phase-II is scheduled for February 2027. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. The Houselisting and Housing Operation captures details of amenities available and assets possessed by households, whereas Population Enumeration captures demographic, socio-economic and migration particulars of every individual.
  2. Caste of every individual will be enumerated during the Houselisting and Housing Operation phase, and not during the Population Enumeration phase.
  3. Phase-I is conducted over a 30-day window in each State/UT between April and September 2026, while Phase-II is scheduled for February 2027.
  • A. 1 only
  • B. 1 and 3 only
  • C. 2 and 3 only
  • D. 1, 2 and 3

Q14. With reference to Census 2027, the questionnaire notified by the Government of India on 22 January 2026 pertains to which one of the following — described as the very first phase of the exercise?

  • A. Houselisting and Housing Operation (HLO)
  • B. Population Enumeration (PE)
  • C. National Caste Enumeration Schedule
  • D. Pre-test Enumeration Operation

Q15. The notification dated 22 January 2026 prescribing 33 questions for the first phase of Census 2027 was issued under the authority of which one of the following?

  • A. The Collection of Statistics Act, 2008
  • B. The Census Act, 1948
  • C. The Registration of Births and Deaths Act, 1969
  • D. The Statistical Services (Pay & Service Conditions) Act, 1980