Cabinet Approves National Population Register Updation, Clears Rs 3,941.35 Crore For Exercise

The Union Cabinet on Tuesday approved the conducting of census 2021 and the updation of National Population Register. While addressing the media, Union Minister Prakash Javadekar said that the process will be a self declaration process and no document will be required. "Cabinet has approved expenditure of Rs. 8,754.23 crore for the exercise of Census of India 2021 and Rs. 3,941.35 crore for updation of National Population Register (NPR)", Javadekar said. 

The updating exercise is to commence from April next year. The NPR is a list of "usual residents" of the country. A "usual resident" is defined for the purposes of NPR as a person who has resided in a local area for the past six months or more or a person who intends to reside in that area for the next six months or more.

The data for National Population Register was collected in 2010 along with the house-listing phase of Census of India 2011. The data was updated in 2015 by conducting door-to-door survey. The digitisation of the updated information has been completed.

Now it has been decided to update the National Population Register along with the house-listing phase of Census 2021 during April to September 2020 in all the states/union territories except Assam, according to the website of the Office of the Registrar General, and Census Commissioner. A gazette notification to this effect was issued in August this year.

The NPR will be prepared at the local (village/sub-Town), sub-district, district, state and national level under provisions of the Citizenship Act 1955 and the Citizenship (Registration of Citizens and issue of National Identity Cards) Rules, 2003. It is mandatory for every usual resident of India to register in the NPR.

The objective of the NPR is to create a comprehensive identity database of every usual resident in the country. The database would contain demographic as well as biometric particulars.

The government cleared the decks for the next round of updating the NPR, along with the house-listing phase of Census 2021 in 2020. The Union Cabinet has also approved funds to the tune of Rs 627.40 crore for 10 projects sanctioned during 2018-19 in Swadesh Darshan Scheme. Additional Rs 1854.67 crore during 2019-20 for sanctioning of news projects.

On Atal Bihari Vajpayee's birth anniversary, the government will start two new schemes- AtalJal Mission (₹6,000 cr Budget-₹3,000 cr each from World Bank and government).