A day after the Union government authorised the appointment of private schoolteachers and members of “institutions, societies and trusts” as Census enumerators, senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Saturday (October 17, 2026) alleged that the move appeared to be an employment scheme for Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) members.
A former Census official said that though the provision of “any person” being appointed as Census enumerators existed in the Census Rules, 1990, there was no precedent of private persons being engaged for the exercise, and a similar suggestion for the 1991 Census had not been accepted because of concerns over accountability, the official said.
The Population Enumeration (PE) phase, which will be conducted across the country in February 2027, also coincides with annual school examinations and board examinations. In poll-bound Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab and Goa, the door-to-door enumeration will start on December 1 and end on January 4, 2027, followed by Assembly elections, where the government teachers will be put on election duty.
Most government school teachers have also been engaged as Booth Level Officers (BLOs) for the special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls over the past year.
Former Deputy Registrar General of India K. Narayanan Unni told The Hindu that the number of government schoolteachers had not increased in proportion to the population, which could mean a shortage of personnel for the Census.
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