Srinagar, Aug 18: Jammu and Kashmir government on Monday constituted a Union Territory-level census coordination committee for census 2027, with Chief Secretary J&K as its Chairman.
“Sanction is hereby accorded to the constitution of Union Territory Level Census Coordination Committee, comprising the following, for smooth planning, implementation, monitoring, timely completion, and successful conduct of Population Census, 2027,” the government order said.
According to the order, the Administrative Secretary, Planning, Development and Monitoring Department; Administrative Secretary, Finance Department; Administrative Secretary, Housing & Urban Development Department; Administrative Secretary, Revenue Department; Administrative Secretary, School Education Department; Administrative Secretary, Rural Development & Panchayati Raj Department; Director Planning, (Expenditure Division-II, Finance Department) have been nominated as its member, while Director, Census Operation, J&K as its Convener.
The committee shall oversee coordination among all agencies at the Union Territory level for smooth planning, implementation, and monitoring of Census 2027 activities. It shall assess and facilitate the timely availability of resources, logistics, infrastructure, and other support required for the conduct of Census operations in the Union Territory.
The committee shall periodically review the progress of Census-related activities in the Union Territory.
Earlier in June, the central government notified the conduct of the next decennial census to be held in 2027, exercising its authority under Section 3 of the Census Act, 1948. The new notification issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs supersedes an earlier order from March 2019, which had set the schedule for the Census originally planned for 2021 but later postponed indefinitely due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to the notification, the census will be carried out across the country with the reference date set on March 1, 2027. This reference date will be applicable throughout India, with the exception of certain snow-bound and hard-to-reach regions.
For the Union Territory of Ladakh and the snow-bound, non-synchronous areas of the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir, and the states of Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand, the census reference date has been set on October 1, 2026. These regions have traditionally followed an earlier reference date owing to logistical constraints posed by extreme weather and terrain.