Digital Census and Self-enumeration through NPR Update

Subject : Schemes

Concept :

The article discusses implementation of a digital Census and the option for citizens to self-enumerate through updating their National Population Register (NPR) details online.
Census 2021, the first digital Census, will allow citizens to “self-enumerate” when it is conducted.
The government has not announced the date for the Census yet, and a notification from January 2, 2023, indicates that the exercise is postponed until at least September.

National Population Register (NPR)

The NPR is a register that records the usual residents of the country.
It is prepared at various levels, including local, sub-district, district, state, and national.
The creation of the NPR is governed by the provisions of the Citizenship Act 1955 and the Citizenship (Registration of Citizens and issue of National Identity Cards) Rules, 2003.
It is mandatory for every usual resident of India to register in the NPR.
A usual resident is defined as a person who has resided in a local area for the past 6 months or more, or a person intending to reside for next 6 months or more.

Scope:

The NPR exercise is conducted at the local, sub-district, district, state and national levels.
The NPR will collect both demographic data and biometric data. Biometric data will be updated through Aadhar details.
In the 2010 exercise, the RGI had collected only demographic details.
In 2015, it updated the data further with the mobile, Aadhaar and ration card numbers of residents.
For the 2020 exercise, it has dropped the ration card number but added other categories.

Differences between NPR and Census

The census involves a detailed questionnaire, collecting information such as age, sex, marital status, occupation, religion, and more.
The NPR collects basic demographic data and biometric particulars.
The census is governed by the Census Act, 1948, while the NPR operates under a set of rules framed under the Citizenship Act, 1955.