While laying foundation stone for Janganana Bhawan in New Delhi today, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said that 2021 census will be a digital process and data will be collected through a mobile phone application. He said that move comes to introduce a digital medium in order to move away from mainstream paper method of collecting data for census.

Census will be carried out in 16 langus 

He said that census will be carried out in 16 langus and at a cost of Rs. 12,000 crore. Shah also said that Census data will w be collected through a mobile app, making it first time that mobile app will be used for census exercise. 
Talking about Referring 2021 census, he said data will help in future planning of country, especially for development initiatives and welfare schemes, and it will be a 'Jan Bhagidari' (people's participation) exercise.

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"India's total of 130 crore population should be informed about its benefits. How, census data could be used for future planning, development initiatives, and welfare schemes. utilisation of census data is multi-dimensional and will be a significant contribution to nation's progress," Shah said. 

He also said that census will help in deciding boundaries of municipal wards, assemblies, and Lok Sabha constituencies. " whole approach was changed when Narendra Modi became Prime Minister in 2014. approach has been changed completely, thinking has been changed. Goals have been set to completely eradicate problems," he added.

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Home Minister said that on basis of 2011 Census, Modi government had planned 22 welfare schemes related to electricity connection to every home, gas connections, construction of roads, houses for poor, toilets, bank accounts and opening of bank branches among ors. He also said that if we take into account 2011 census, we will see that Indian terrain is 2.4% of total world area and if population is taken into account, we are 17.5% of entire world’s population.
 
He, while talking about India’s proportions in relation to larger picture of world, said, “This difference in figures is an eye-opener and is an indication of how we, as a nation have to move forward towards development.” Shah also pointed out that literacy rate of nation has increased by 10% and w stands at 74%, according to census of 2011. He also said that 2011 census pointed out that India is one of youth-centric nations of world.

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'Census to give way to various schemes'

"By 2022, re will t be a family which will t have a gas connection," he said. Shah also said 2011 census reflected poor sex ratio of male and female in some states. That is why programme of 'Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao' was launched, he said. "Under this scheme, Haryana government has done so much work in last five years that State's sex ratio is w among best in country," he said.  

Shah also said data for National Population Register (NPR), a list of usual residents of country, will also be collected along with census exercise. Officials said that NPR could be basis for a pan-India version of Assam's National Register of Citizens.

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(With PTI inputs)