India, May 1 -- The first phase of the 2027 census will begin from May 1, celebrated as Maharashtra Day, with self-enumeration by citizens for the initial two weeks. From May 16, nearly 264,000 field enumerators and supervisors will fan out across the state, visiting every home, while the third and crucial phase that includes caste-based enumeration will be undertaken in February 2027, Chief Principal Census Officer for Maharashtra Nirupama Dange said during a media briefing on Thursday.

"This is the first time that citizens have been given the option of self-enumeration, via a form that has 33 questions," Dange told reporters. The form will be available on a dedicated web portal (https://se.census.gov.in) developed by the offices of the...