Nagpur: Preparations for the first phase of the Census of India 2027 have gathered pace, with the district administration set to begin training sessions for census officials from March 23 to 25. The exercise marks the start of field-level readiness for the upcoming houselisting operations.Officials said a batch of master trainers underwent training in Pune on March 14 and 15 and have now returned to Nagpur to lead local sessions. The upcoming training will focus on charge officers and supervisory staff, who will subsequently guide enumerators ahead of door-to-door data collection.The sessions will be conducted under the supervision of senior district officials, with both rural and urban teams being trained simultaneously. The programme will cover operational protocols, digital data collection, and coordination mechanisms.For rural areas, the administration has identified 43 charge offices to oversee operations across 13 tehsils, 29 nagar panchayats, and the Nagpur Cantonment region. Each charge officer will supervise 100 to 150 enumeration blocks. In the city, the civic body has planned 10 charge officers per zone, supported by four sub-officers each, along with around five head office officials, taking the total to over 55 officers.The district is expected to deploy over 4,000 enumerators in rural areas, while the NMC will engage around 6,000 enumerators for urban coverage. Each enumerator will handle a block of 600 to 800 residents, with supervisors assigned to monitor small teams.The census will be conducted in two phases, beginning with the houselisting and housing census between April and Sept 2026, followed by population enumeration in Feb 2027. The first phase will include a 33-question survey on housing conditions, amenities, and asset ownership. For the first time, citizens will also have the option of self-enumeration through an online portal between May 1 and May 15, while the govt has introduced digital mascots Pragati and Vikas to promote public awareness about the exercise.With training set to begin, officials said preparations have entered a critical phase ahead of the large-scale enumeration exercise across Nagpur.
