New Delhi, June 1 : With the first phase of Census 2027 set to begin on Monday, more than 3.74 lakh people in Gujarat have already completed self-enumeration, as the state gears up for what officials describe as India's first fully digital census exercise.

The census, the 16th in the country's history and the eighth since Independence, will be conducted in two phases across Gujarat and the rest of India. The previous census was carried out in 2011.

Announcing the commencement of the exercise, Census Director Sujal Mayatra urged all citizens to participate in the nationwide enumeration programme.

"The House Listing and Housing Census will be conducted across the state from June 1 to June 30. During this phase, enumerators will ask a total of 33 questions covering housing conditions, family details, source of drinking water, toilet facilities and other assets," Mayatra said.

The first phase, known as the House Listing and Housing Census (HLO), will involve enumerators collecting information on housing conditions, household composition, access to drinking water, sanitation facilities and other assets.

The survey will be conducted in all districts, municipal corporations, municipalities and villages across Gujarat.

The second phase, comprising Population Enumeration (PE) and caste enumeration, will be conducted between February 9 and February 28, 2027.

According to census authorities, caste data collection will be undertaken alongside the nationwide population count during this stage.

Mayatra said: "During this phase, population enumeration and caste enumeration will be carried out, and the caste census exercise will also be completed across the country."

Officials said Gujarat's self-enumeration campaign, which began on May 17, received participation from Governor Acharya Devvrat, Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel, members of the state Cabinet, the Chief Secretary, senior secretaries, district collectors, municipal commissioners and other citizens who submitted their details through the online self-enumeration facility.

As of May 30, more than 3.74 lakh citizens had filled self-enumeration forms under Census 2027.

Of these, around 3.30 lakh submissions had been successfully completed, while approximately 44,000 forms remained under processing.

The census operation in Gujarat will cover 1,10,598 House Listing Blocks (HLBs) and will be carried out by 1,09,038 enumerators supported by 18,254 supervisors.

To prepare for the exercise, enumerators, supervisors and other census officials have undergone training in three phases. Officials said modern technology would play a central role in this year's census.

Dedicated Android and iOS applications have been developed in 16 languages, including Gujarati, and are equipped with offline data collection capabilities to facilitate enumeration in areas with limited internet connectivity.

A special Self-Enumeration option was also introduced, allowing residents to submit their information directly through the official portal.

Census authorities emphasised that all information collected under the Census Act, 1948, and the Census Rules, 1990, would remain strictly confidential.

"All personal information collected under the provisions of the Census Act, 1948, and the Census Rules, 1990, will be kept completely confidential. The information cannot be used for legal or taxation purposes," officials said.

Authorities further noted that every citizen is legally required to provide accurate and complete information during the census process and that the law provides for penalties in cases where individuals refuse to furnish information.

/IANS