There has been a surprisingly low amount of discussion on the Census in the making, apart from the loud political calls from the opposition for a caste census that the BJP-led government has agreed to.

But there is a lot in the emerging details that may involve both procedural difficulties - as well as potential controversies related to surveillance, privacy, and scrutiny, not to speak of cybersecurity issues that the government needs to be watchful about.

Two big headline news this week - one on the State Bank of India’s admission that vital data of 4,000 customers suffered a breach, and another on Bangalore-based eMudhra Ltd shutting down its global digital certificate business after a global level security lapse - are pointers to the need for cybersecurity safeguards, which can potentially also have political ramifications.

Shares of Bangalore-based eMudhra, a key player in Aadhaar-based e-KYC (Know Your Customer) verifications, crashed after the security crisis.

But there is a lot more to this than cybersecurity, which one can say is par for the course in a digitally connected planet.

Officially, the forthcoming 16th Census of India, to be conducted electronically through handsets and computers, comes 16 years late, after India’s smartphone explosion. There is much to look forward to when it comes to checking the changes and shifts of a mammoth demographic transition through a digitally savvy exercise.

Social And Political Minefield

But precisely for this reason, it may be hiding a social and political minefield. The SIR under the Election Commission of India (ECI) started around mid-2025, but the process that followed gradually threw up irregularities and controversies over its design, methodology, human interventions, and computerisation.

The Census of India, under the Home Ministry, may turn out to be far more political. Pragmatism requires caution for policymakers because the best of intentions can be met with a trust deficit or procedural hurdles.

News is now out that the 40 questions included in the two-phase Census, whose first part involving house-listing has already begun, will seek Aadhar and voter ID numbers, besides banking, mobile phone and passport details in its next round. There are also questions related to migration, parental identity, and nativity.  That is getting way too personal. Questions like whether a person has had Covid-19 vaccination sound relevant, but other issues are critical.

The Centre had told Parliament that no decision had been taken to update the National Population Register (NPR) during the 2027 Census, but details in the questionnaire suggest that the population may turn out to be a case of a backdoor NPR blended with the Census. This could invite charges of Big Brother spying on details for social profiling that may prove difficult.  

New data technologies and artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities are a double-edged sword that may help welfare schemes but hinder privacy or aid digital surveillance.

Technically, a Census gathers data from every single person or unit in a populace, while a survey involves samples that gathers data from a selected subset to represent the entire population. The problem with the Census 2027 questionnaire is that its data may be seen not as a detailed headcount, but one that may involve snooping capabilities, as it has clear elements of the NPR alongside the usual headcount.

The NPR was initiated in 2010 and updated in 2015 and holds the records of about 120 crore individuals. It contains names, addresses, family details, place of birth, parents’ place, and dates of birth and a lot more data points, including income tax, Aadhaar, driving licence, voter ID, and mobile phone numbers. It seems the emerging Census process incorporates the NPR without being discussed in parliament or involving a public discussion of the kind stock market and Reserve Bank policy papers do.

The Census is supposed to help policymaking, resource distribution and management of welfare programmes in the nation of 150 crore citizens. However, it also reveals social patterns, which, when interpreted politically, can have questionable consequences.

Boxing People In

Notably, the census questionnaire does not provide any space for someone who wants to say she has no caste or religion. There are people who may want to use the ‘Can’t Say/Won’t say/Don’t Know’ response to answer questions. Given that the caste system is considered to be undesirable, one would logically encourage progressive citizens to shun such a column.

In the absence of such a space, the Census may force people into being boxed in. What such a Census would mean for agnostics, atheists, and various shades of sceptics? Civil society groups had demanded a ‘no caste, no religion’ option, but that seems to have been rejected summarily.

More importantly, there may be political run-ins over religion.  Mapping of religion-based data with Aadhaar and mobile numbers may enable targeted programmes or communications that may raise eyebrows or worse. Humongous databases, geographical positioning devices and the use of AI may invite charges of a slyly crafted surveillance mechanism. If the process has lacunae – on the lines of what seems to have happened with the Election Commission – one may expect trouble.

India’s Constitution gives citizens the “right to remain silent” under its Article 20, but that is available only in legal cases to shield against self-incrimination. The Census forces people to speak on issues and denies them the choice to remain silent.  This is particularly relevant because a citizen may offer some details to get help in welfare programmes, but not for a centralised database that can slice and dice data in a manner that invades privacy.

In the currently charged political atmosphere in the country, the Census is best conducted through a bipartisan consensus, much like in the case of the goods and services tax (GST). But one wonders if it is already too late.

(The writer is a senior journalist covering a diverse range of subjects, including economy, technology, and politics. Views expressed are personal.)