NEW DELHI, Mar 30: The government has released 33 Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) for the first phase of the Census and clarified that live-in couples may be treated as married if they consider their relationship a stable union.
The FAQs are available on the self-enumeration portal opened for citizens opting to fill in details online for both phases of the Census—Houselisting and Housing Census (HLO) and Population Enumeration.
According to the portal, “If a couple in a live-in relationship consider their relationship as a stable union, they should be treated as a married couple.”
The first phase of the Census, beginning April 1, 2026, will include 33 questions covering housing conditions and household details.
These include queries on materials used in flooring, walls and roofs, number of married couples, sex of the head of the household, type of cereals consumed, access to basic and modern amenities, and ownership of vehicles.
Enumerators will also collect details such as building and census house numbers, usage and condition of the house, and number of residents.
Information about the head of the household—including name, sex, social category such as Scheduled Caste or Scheduled Tribe, and ownership status—will also be recorded, officials said. (Agencies)
