Ahead of Census, new question: What cereal do you consume?
Paper: GS II
Topic: Amendment in Constitution, Important Aspects of Governance, Transparency and accountability.
For Prelims: NRC, NPR, and Census 2021.
For Mains: Government Policies and Interventions for Development in various sectors and issues arising out of their Design and Implementation
In News: Amid fears expressed by the Opposition and states such as West Bengal and Kerala over the National Population Register (NPR), the government notified another pre-Census exercise that will seek new information on household consumption, including the use of cereals.
About Census of India
- The decennial Census of Indiahas been conducted 15 times, as of 2011.
- While it has been undertaken every 10 years, beginning in 1872 under British Viceroy Lord Mayo, the first complete census was taken in 1881.
- Post-1949, it has been conducted by the Registrar General and Census Commissioner of Indiaunder the Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India.
- All the censuses since 1951 were conducted under the 1948 Census of India Act.
- The last censuswas held in 2011, whilst the next will be held in 2021.
What is National Population Register?
- The NPR is a list of “usual residents of the country”.
- According to the Home Ministry, a “usual resident of the country” is one who has been residing in a local area for at least the last six months or intends to stay in a particular location for the next six months.
- NPR is not a citizenship enumeration drive, as it would record even a foreign national staying in a locality for more than six months.
- This makes NPR different from the NRC, which includes only Indian citizens while seeking to identify and exclude non-citizens.
How to get enrolled in NPR?
- The NPR is being prepared under provisions of the Citizenship Act, 1955 and the Citizenship (Registration of Citizens and Issue of National Identity Cards) Rules, 2003.
- It is mandatory for every “usual resident of India” to register in the NPR.
- Only Assam will not be included (as per a notification by the Registrar General of India in August), given the recently completed NRC in that state.
- NPR will be conducted in conjunction with the house-listing phase, the first phase of the Census, by the Office of Registrar General of India (RGI) for Census 2021.
- It is conducted at the local, sub-district, district, state and national levels.
- The RGI has already begun a pilot project in 1,200 villages and 40 towns and cities through 5,218 enumeration blocks where it is collecting various data from people.
- The final enumeration will begin in April 2020 and end in September 2020.
Ahead of Census, new question: What cereal do you consume?
Amid fears expressed by the Opposition and states such as West Bengal and Kerala over the National Population Register (NPR), the government has notified another pre-Census exercise that will seek new information on household consumption, including the use of cereals.
The notification comes after the Union Cabinet approved a proposal for conducting the Census 2021 and updating the NPR.
- The exercise House listing Operations of Census 2021:
- It will also seek data, for the first time, on smartphones, piped gas connections, and mobile numbers.
- However, the notification makes it clear that mobile numbers will be asked only for Census-related communication.
- Another key departure from the previous two such exercises is that a question on households availing banking services has been removed.
- The notification issued by the Registrar General, under the Ministry of Home Affairs, shows that questions on 31 data points will be asked.
- During the last Census, questions were asked on 30 points and did not include the question about cereal consumption.
- According to a Home Ministry proposal, NPR updation will cover demographic details in 21 points, including ‘date and place of birth of parents’, last place of residence, PAN, Aadhaaron voluntarily basis, Voter ID card number, Driving Licence number and mobile number.
- In the last NPR done in 2010, data was collected on 15 points and did not include details such as ‘date and place of birth of parents’, and last place of residence.
- The House listing exercise and updation of NPR will be done simultaneously between April and September 2020.
- The Census will be conducted from February 9-28, 2021.
Conclusion
The updation move has triggered fears amid protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) that the government would also push for nationwide implementation of the National Register of Citizens (NRC).
Prelims Question
With reference to the National Population Register (NPR) consider the following statements:
- Registering with NPR is mandatory, along with the furnishing of additional data such as PAN, Aadhaar, driving licence and voter ID.
- Registration includes both demographic data and biometric data.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
(A) 1 Only
(B) 2 Only
(C) Both 1 and 2
(D) None of the above
Answer: B
Explanation:
Why statement 1 is incorrect: According to Home Ministry sources, while registering with NPR is mandatory, furnishing of additional data such as PAN, Aadhaar, driving licence and voter ID is voluntary.
Why statement 2 is correct:
- The NPR will collect both demographic data and biometric data; although for the latter it will depend upon Aadhaar.
- In the last NPR in 2010, data were collected on 15 aspects; in the 2020 NPR, there are 21 data points.
- Again, three of the data points from 2010 (father’s name; mother’s name; spouse’s name) have been clubbed into one in the 2020 exercise, so that, in effect, there are eight new data points, including the contentious “date & place of birth of parents”:
* Aadhaar Number (voluntary)
* Mobile Number
* Date & Place of Birth of Parents
* Place of Last Residence
* Passport Number (if Indian passport holder)
* Voter ID Card Number
* Permanent Account Number
* Driving Licence Number