The government has not yet decided to update the National Population Register (NPR), as stated in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday. This announcement was made by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) in response to a question regarding the NPR update prior to the Census-2027.

Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai stated that the intent to conduct the census was notified in the Gazette on June 16, 2025. While the government has notified its intention to conduct the Census, the period for conducting houselisting and the housing Census will be notified in due course. The estimated financial outlay for conducting the Census is still under finalization.

The Census 2027 is planned to be carried out in two phases. The first phase will cover the housing census, collecting data on housing conditions, assets, and amenities of each household. The second phase will include population enumeration, gathering demographic, socio-economic, cultural, and other details of every person in each household. Notably, the Census 2027 will also include a caste enumeration.

The preparations for Census 2027 have already begun, with a two-day conference of Directors of Census Operations held earlier this month to discuss the roadmap. The conference, which took place on July 3–4 in New Delhi, saw the participation of Directors of Census Operations, senior officials from various state Directorates of Census Operations, and officers from the Office of the Registrar General and Census Commissioner, India.

The MHA has clarified that the Census 2027 will use digital tools for data collection. For snow-bound regions, a different timeline will be followed, with a reference date of October 2026.

The NPR was first prepared in 2010 and updated in 2015. As per the Citizenship Rules, the NPR is the first stage in the preparation of the National Register of Indian Citizens (NRIC). A notification regarding the intent to update the NPR along with Census 2021 was issued on July 31, 2019.