India will commence the first phase of its long-delayed 16th decennial Census on 1 April 2026, when houselisting and housing-condition surveys begin nationwide. In a letter dated 27 June, Registrar General and Census Commissioner Mritunjay Kumar Narayan instructed state and union-territory chief secretaries to prepare supervisors and enumerators and finalise work distribution ahead of the launch. To ensure uniform survey blocks, the Centre has ordered that all changes to district, tehsil, town and village boundaries be completed by 31 December 2025. The limits will remain frozen from 1 January 2026 until 31 March 2027, covering both the houselisting phase and the subsequent headcount. The second phase—population enumeration—is set for 1 February 2027. Around 3.4 million enumerators and supervisors, supported by roughly 130,000 census functionaries, will carry out the exercise using a mobile app, with an option for households to self-enumerate. The survey will also include caste data and detailed questions on housing assets, amenities and socio-economic indicators.