As part of preparations for Census 2027, the Directorate of Census Operations will conduct a pre-test from November 10 to 30 across all states and union territories. This pre-test will cover the first phase of the census, which involves house listing and housing enumeration. Citizens will also have the option of self-enumeration between November 1 and 7. Mumbai has been selected for this preliminary exercise along with other districts, and the test will take place in the M West Ward. On Tuesday, Census Director Dr. Nirupama J. Dange met Municipal Commissioner Bhushan Gagrani to discuss preparations, in the presence of Additional Municipal Commissioner (Western Suburbs) Dr. Vipin Sharma.
The state-level pre-test for house listing and housing enumeration will be carried out in three selected sample areas. These include 135 house listing groups in the M/West Ward of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, 26 villages in Chopda taluka of Jalgaon district, and 45 villages in Gaganbawda taluka of Kolhapur district. The provisions of the Census Act, 1948, will apply to all operations conducted in these areas. Around 402 enumerators and supervisors will be deployed across Maharashtra for the pre-test. The Union Government has already notified that the first phase of Census 2027 — house listing and housing enumeration — will be conducted between April and September 2026, within a one-month window. The second phase, population enumeration, will be held in February 2027. Citizens are urged to cooperate fully with the enumerators and supervisors assigned to collect data under the Census Act.