Census 2027 to count transgender-headed households, Centre tells Rajya Sabha
New Delhi: The Union government informed the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday (March 11, 2026) that the upcoming Census 2027 will include a 'transgender' category for recording the sex of the head of household. Replying in writing, Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai said the census will be conducted in two phases, and questions for the first phase have already been notified.
In the first phase, named Houselisting and Housing Census, enumerators will collect information on housing conditions, household particulars, amenities available, and assets possessed by each household. This will include the name and sex of the head of household. "Three categories of sex of head of household viz. Male/Female/Transgender will be collected," Mr. Rai stated.
The second phase, Population Enumeration, will record information about each individual. Its questions will be notified in due course, the Minister added.
To ensure no one is left out, enumerators will undertake house-to-house field visits across the entire enumeration area. Citizens will also have the option of self-enumeration through a dedicated portal. The self-enumeration facility includes FAQs, tool tips, and validation checks to ensure accuracy, and the data submitted will be confirmed by enumerators before final submission.
Addressing data security concerns, Mr. Rai said all necessary measures have been taken to protect data collected on mobile devices, during transmission, and at the server level. Adequate training will be provided to enumerators and supervisors, and validation rules are embedded in the mobile application. Supervisors will also monitor and check the data collected by enumerators.
The Union Cabinet has approved ₹11,718 crore for the Census of India 2027, which will be the 16th decennial census of the country. For the first time since Independence, the census will include enumeration of castes. The decadal exercise, originally scheduled for 2021, was postponed because of the COVID-19 pandemic. This edition will be fully digital and will offer self-enumeration to citizens.
The inclusion of a transgender category for heads of households marks a step towards more inclusive data collection. It also aligns with the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2019, which legally recognises the transgender community and prohibits discrimination against them. Census data is used for policy planning, resource allocation, and implementing welfare schemes across the country.
