Shimla, May 30 -- Himachal Pradesh's snow-bound regions will be among the first areas in the country to be covered during the second phase of Census 2027, with population enumeration scheduled from September 11 to September 30, 2026, several months ahead of the national schedule of February 9 to February 28, 2027. Addressing a press conference in Shimla on Friday, principal Census officer and director of Census operations Deep Shikha Sharma said that 6,903 snow-bound villages and areas of Himachal Pradesh have been identified for advance enumeration due to harsh winter conditions that make access difficult during the regular Census period. She said the first phase of Census 2027, comprising the house listing and housing Census (HLO), will be conducted across the state from June 16 to July 15. The exercise marks the beginning of India's first fully digital Census and will be carried out under the supervision of the office of the registrar general and Census commissioner, India. Census 2027 will be the 16th Census of India and the eighth after Independence. For the first time, citizens will have the option of participating through a self-enumeration facility. Residents can complete the Census online through the official self-enumeration portal from June 1 to June 15, after which they will receive a self-enumeration ID that can be shared with Census officials during field verification. Sharma clarified that no OTP will be asked during the Census process and no documents will be demanded by officials for enumeration purposes. She urged people to remain cautious of misinformation and cooperate only with authorised personnel. The house listing and housing Census will collect information relating to housing conditions, ownership status, drinking water facilities, sanitation, electricity, cooking fuel, internet connectivity, household assets and other basic amenities. She emphasised that all information collected during the Census would remain strictly confidential and would be used only for statistical purposes, development planning and policymaking. To conduct the exercise, around 20,390 enumerators and supervisors will be deployed across Himachal Pradesh. The Government of India has allocated approximately Rs 86 crore for Census 2027 operations in the state. Officials said the digital Census will be supported by the HLO mobile application and a dedicated Census management and monitoring portal, enabling real-time monitoring of field operations. The mobile application will function in both online and offline modes, ensuring smooth data collection even in remote and network-deficient areas. Training programmes for Census personnel are currently underway. Principal Census officers and charge officers will oversee operations at various administrative levels, while the secretary of the general administration department has been designated as the state coordinator for Census activities. According to officials, the data collected during the house listing and housing Census will provide critical inputs for infrastructure development, welfare schemes, resource allocation and evidence-based policymaking aimed at improving the quality of life of citizens across the state....