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With the ongoing Census workout throwing up information that disagree from authorities records, peculiarly connected issues specified arsenic unfastened defecation and household entree to energy oregon cooking state connections, enumerators accidental they person been asked by elder officials to revisit households and close the information “discrepancies”.
Several enumerators, mostly authorities schoolteachers and anganwadi workers, had taken to societal media to study the discrepancies and to emblem the glaring inequality and poorness connected the ground. Some adjacent complained that residents were unwilling to stock information, fearing cancellation of authorities benefits.
On June 2, the Director of Census Operations (DCO), Rajasthan, wrote to each territory functionaries that “during the investigation of tract information collected truthful far, immoderate discrepancies person been noticed”. In the missive accessed by The Hindu, the Charge Officers were instructed to “verify the block-level information done the CMMS (Census Management and Monitoring System) portal, successful accordance with the existent tract situation”.
The missive stated that a discrepancy successful information postulation was noticed mostly implicit a fewer subjects. In particular, the missive flagged the categorisation of “open defecation” for astir households; usage of substance specified arsenic wood, dung cakes, harvest residue, kerosene, etc., being recorded for households having LPG connections, particularly successful municipality areas; and for the drinking h2o section, the enactment of “tap h2o from treated source” not being recorded for astir households. It further said that for drinking h2o sources specified arsenic a river, pond, dam, canal, spring, lake, tank, etc., the enactment “within premises” cannot apply, and that the enactment “near premises” should besides beryllium checked carefully.
It besides cited the enactment of the “no lighting” enactment and showed net entree arsenic disposable adjacent erstwhile the household did not person a telephone (basic/smartphone/landline).
When contacted, a elder Census authoritative said, “The missive was issued to guarantee that existent tract conditions are recorded without immoderate ambiguity oregon deficiency of understanding, and without immoderate connection spread betwixt the household and the enumerator. Discrepancies recovered aft tract verification by Charge Officers, Sub-Divisional Census Officers, Principal Census Officers, District Coordinators, Officers of Census Directorate, etc., indispensable beryllium addressed. The prime of data/information should not beryllium affected owed to ambiguity oregon deficiency of clarity oregon preconceived notion.”
As of August 13, 2025, retired of 5,86,944 villages, arsenic galore arsenic 5,66,068 were declared ODF by the Union government.
An enumerator from Rajasthan told The Hindu connected information of anonymity, “In the mobile app, if we participate that a household has a tin roof, we are asked by our superiors to alteration it to concrete. Are we expected to lie? Similarly, if the location does not person a toilet and occupants are defecating successful the open, we are told to cheque if determination is simply a toilet nearby, adjacent that of a neighbour oregon a relative, which they whitethorn beryllium utilizing occasionally oregon adjacent a nationalist urinal. Then the introduction tin beryllium changed from ‘open defecation’ to having entree to a toilet.”
Another enumerator from Uttar Pradesh said, “Being authorities officials, we person been asked not to prime options that whitethorn amusement the authorities successful a mediocre light.”
Enumerators said they were besides getting requests from underprivileged radical to assistance them get authorities schemes.
“Most households successful my country of work did not person basal facilities. No roof, doorway oregon walls. Where are we expected to constitute down the Census household number? The residents assumed that we could assistance them avail authorities schemes and services, specified arsenic LPG connections, moving water, a subsidised location oregon a toilet and adjacent a pension,” said an enumerator from Uttar Pradesh.
Rekha Devi, caput of the anganwadi workers national successful Uttarakhand, said that workers were facing difficulties during enumeration. “There is nary mobile connectivity successful respective villages. The authorities provides a mobile telephone recharge worthy ₹66, whereas the full workout is digital. We cannot unopen the anganwadi centres adjacent for a day. How are we expected to behaviour door-to-door enumeration on with each the different duties,” asked Ms. Devi.
Census is conducted successful 2 phases - Houselisting Operations (HLO) and the Population Census.
At present, the HLO phase, which started connected April 1, is going connected successful phases crossed the country. The HLO exercise, wherever 33 notified questions are asked relating to lodging conditions, household details, amenities disposable and assets possessed by households, is to beryllium concluded by September 30.
This is the archetypal integer Census, and astir 32 lakh enumerators are entering the records connected their idiosyncratic phones connected a mobile exertion developed by the Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India’s (RG&CCI) office.
The tract operations are being monitored successful real-time connected a portal by elder officials to “oversee progress, place gaps oregon delays, and guarantee timely completion of activities successful accordance with prescribed timelines”. To efficaciously negociate and show the assorted Census-related activities, a dedicated web-based portal, namely the Census Management and Monitoring System (CMMS), has been developed.
Each enumerator is expected to screen astir 120-150 households of astir 750-800 residents.
