LUCKNOW, May 8 -- Chief minister Yogi Adityanath formally launched the first phase of Census 2027 in Uttar Pradesh on Thursday. At a programme held at his official residence, the chief minister launched the house-listing and housing census exercise with the motto: "Hamari Janganana, Hamara Vikas". "Census is not merely a count of population, but a strong foundation for holistic, inclusive and well-planned development," Adityanath said. He said the present era is driven by data-based decisions, and accurate data obtained from the census plays an important role in the effective implementation of infrastructure, education, healthcare, social security and various public welfare schemes. "Census is a medium to ensure that the last person in society also becomes an equal participant in the stream of development," the chief minister said. "Under the guidance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, digital census is being conducted in the country for the first time. In the first phase, work related to house listing and housing census will be carried out. Citizens have been given the option of self-enumeration from May 7 to May 21 and can upload their details on the digital platform themselves. Thereafter, during field operations, census personnel will conduct door-to-door surveys," he added. The chief minister said that enumeration of every individual will be carried out in the second phase. He pointed out that caste enumeration has also been included in Census 2027 and villages located in forest areas will be covered for the first time. Adityanath said Uttar Pradesh's estimated population is around 25.70 crore. The census exercise will cover all 18 divisions, 75 districts, 350 tehsils, 17 municipal corporations, 745 urban local bodies, 21 cantonment boards, 57,694 gram panchayats and around 1.04 lakh revenue villages. For the exercise, around 5.47 lakh personnel are being deployed, including 4.50 lakh enumerators, 85,000 supervisors and 12,000 state and district-level officers. About 5.35 lakh personnel have already been trained for both phases, he added. The chief minister appealed to people to treat the census as a national responsibility and participate actively in the exercise....