J&K prepares for Census 2027 amid old sensitivities

Srinagar: Jammu & Kashmir is preparing for one of the most politically consequential census exercises in its recent history, as the Union Territory (UT) gears up for Census of India 2027 against the backdrop of the abrogation of Article 370, controversial reservation policies and lingering mistrust over demographic and electoral changes.

The Union Home Ministry has formally notified that Phase-I of the census — houselisting and housing enumeration (HLO) — will be conducted digitally for the first time. The 30-day exercise will be carried out anytime between April 1 and September 30, 2026, with the exact schedule for J&K yet to be finalised.

Amit Sharma, Director of Census Operations and Citizen Registration for J&K and Ladakh, said the timeline would be decided shortly by the Census Coordination Committee headed by Chief Secretary Atal Dulloo. “Preparatory work is underway and dates will be notified once the committee takes a final call,” Sharma said.

The census will be conducted in two phases. While houselisting will take place in 2026, population enumeration across most of the country is scheduled for February–March 2027. However, due to harsh winter conditions, population enumeration in snow-bound areas of J&K and Ladakh will be conducted earlier, in September 2026, with October 1, 2026, as the reference date.

High political stakes

For J&K, the census carries implications far beyond statistical enumeration. It will provide updated data on Scheduled Castes (SCs), Scheduled Tribes (STs) and Other Backward Classes (OBCs), with OBCs being enumerated for the first time in the UT. The data will directly influence future reservation policies and job quotas — an issue that has sparked intense political debate since new domicile and reservation rules were introduced after August 2019.

The census will also serve as the base for the next delimitation of Assembly and Lok Sabha constituencies. Adding to its significance, the 2027 census will, for the first time, enumerate the Pahari ethnic group — along with Paddari, Gadda Brahman and Koli communities — as separate Scheduled Tribes, following their inclusion in the ST list in 2024.

Equally historic is the inclusion of caste enumeration, the first such exercise since 1931, which is expected to shape future debates on social justice, political representation and welfare targeting.

Lingering distrust

Census exercises in J&K have long been shadowed by political sensitivities. The delimitation process completed in May 2022, based on 2011 census figures, triggered allegations of skewed political representation, with critics arguing that constituency boundaries favoured the Hindu-majority Jammu region over the Muslim-majority Kashmir Valley.

In the Valley, demographic anxieties have persisted for decades, with sections of society fearing that census data could be used to alter the region’s demographic character. In the past, such fears have occasionally led to boycott calls by separatist or militant groups.

Meanwhile, in Jammu, recurring demands for separate statehood continue to surface whenever demographic data becomes central to governance and political restructuring.

A defining exercise

Officials insist that Census 2027 will follow established procedures while leveraging digital tools for accuracy and efficiency. The data collected during 2026–27 will shape everything from development planning and resource allocation to political representation and reservation policy.

In a UT still navigating the aftershocks of constitutional change, Census 2027 is poised to become a defining moment in J&K’s administrative and political trajectory.