Census 2027: PRAMAN required in training, app practice mandated

The Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India has directed that PRAMAN, a framework for household interaction, be included throughout enumerator and supervisor training for the population enumeration phase of Census 2027. Its Circular No. 27, dated 9 September 2026, sets training requirements for a workforce it puts at around 34 lakh enumerators and supervisors, combining respectful questioning with accurate recording and mandatory mobile-app practice.

The Directorate of Census Operations, Karnataka carried the requirement into its state-level Circular No. 14, dated 28 September 2026. That circular puts Karnataka’s enumerator and supervisor workforce at around 1.65 lakh and repeats the direction to embed PRAMAN at every level of training. Both documents prescribe how training is to be organised; they do not establish that the training has been completed.

The national circular concerns Phase II, or Population Enumeration, which collects information about individuals in each household. The Registrar General’s office describes this as a more complex exercise than Phase I, the Houselisting and Housing Census, because it involves a wider range of sensitive questions.

Respectful questioning and accurate recording

Circular No. 27 expands PRAMAN as Pehchaan, meaning identity; Rishta, rapport; Anurodh, request; Madad, assistance; Aankada Shuddhata, data accuracy; and Nishtha, commitment. The Registrar General’s office presents these elements as a structured approach to household interaction intended to earn respondents’ trust, alongside the technical skills required for enumeration.

The office directs that the framework be reinforced through a renewed Seva Bhav pledge, expressing a commitment to serve households with courtesy, neutrality and dedication. Charge Officers, who oversee local census operations, must administer the revised pledge to enumerators and supervisors on the final day of training. The circular says model pledges will be issued separately with detailed training guidelines.

The same circular requires particular attention to questions about religion, mother tongue, Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe status, caste, disability, migration, fertility and economic activity. Training must cover appropriate follow-up questioning and the correct use of category codes, the classifications used to record responses.

On gender, caste, fertility and religion-related questions, the Registrar General’s office specifically requires respectful interaction, accurate recording and avoidance of assumptions or bias. These are training instructions for field staff, rather than findings about how respondents have been treated.

The requirements build on duties set out in the office’s Circular No. 16, dated 17 March 2026. That document instructs enumerators to carry their appointment letter and identity card during field visits, ask questions politely, cover every household in their assigned area and make multiple visits when a census house is locked. It also requires coverage without omissions or duplication.

Training moves through five levels

The Registrar General’s September circular retains the training structure established by Circular No. 9 of 30 January 2026. This is a cascade model: each group of trainers prepares the next group, until instruction reaches the staff collecting and supervising household data.

Under Circular No. 27, subject matter experts develop the curriculum and train National Trainers. National Trainers prepare Master Trainers, who train Field Trainers. Field Trainers then instruct enumerators and supervisors. The earlier rules on trainer responsibilities, attendance, batch creation and monitoring continue to apply unless specifically modified, the office states.

The September circular directs that Master Trainers be drawn from census directorates and state or Union Territory governments, while Field Trainers come from state or Union Territory governments. Selection must take account of familiarity with census work, clear communication and proficiency in the relevant local language. Retaining Phase I trainers is encouraged where feasible.

The office prescribes three days of training for enumerators and supervisors, delivered by two Field Trainers per batch. The normal batch size is 40 to 45 participants, with an absolute ceiling of 50. Trainer batches normally have 30 to 35 participants and cannot exceed 40.

According to the circular, overcrowded batches reduce opportunities to ask questions and practise using the app. Additional batches must be created when the ceiling would otherwise be exceeded. Conversely, Principal Census Officers may combine trainees from adjoining local census units where numbers are too small, while keeping within the limit.

The Registrar General’s office also requires training venues to have adequate seating, projectors, internet connectivity, video-playback facilities and separate toilets. Underground rooms should not be used because connectivity problems may interfere with practical app sessions. Venue details must be entered when batches are created in the Census Management and Monitoring System, the portal used to administer and track census work.

Mobile practice, schedules and field support

Hands-on practice with the Population Enumeration Mobile App is mandatory under Circular No. 27. Field Trainers must ensure that enumerators and supervisors can use it before training ends.

The Registrar General’s office also says self-enumeration, through which households submit their own information, will continue in Phase II. Staff must learn the updated process for accessing, editing and accepting those submissions in the app. The circular suggests encouraging trainees to self-enumerate their own households to become familiar with the questions.

The March duties circular explains the household-checking step: enumerators must collect the self-enumeration IDs, review the submitted information and confirm it with the respondent before accepting or editing it. Self-enumeration therefore does not remove the review task assigned to field staff.

The national September circular sets different training schedules according to the population enumeration reference date. It lists 5 January 2027 for Goa, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand outside its snow-bound areas. For the remaining states, Union Territories and areas using a 1 March 2027 reference date, it schedules enumerator and supervisor training between 21 December 2026 and 15 January 2027. These are training windows, not dates establishing that household visits have occurred.

Karnataka’s September circular lists the same December-to-January window for its enumerators and supervisors against a 1 March 2027 reference date. The national instruction requires both regular and reserve staff to complete training within the schedule, leaving time for revision, preparation and deployment.

Support is also required after fieldwork begins. Circular No. 27 directs Charge Officers to organise online refresher sessions for supervisors approximately four to five days into local field operations. Field Trainers must conduct these in the local language, with Master Trainers and census directorate officials monitoring them. The sessions are to address questions arising from actual field experience, not repeat classroom content.

The Registrar General’s office requires Charge Officers to record the questions raised and clarifications given, and share them with the relevant census directorate. Recurring or unresolved issues are to be escalated for policy clarification where necessary.