SRINAGAR: The Jammu and Kashmir Government on Friday directed all teaching staff and other government officials deployed for Census-2027 duties to perform their assigned responsibilities diligently, warning that refusal, negligence or misconduct during census operations could attract penal and disciplinary action.
In a circular issued by the General Administration Department (GAD), the government said the House Listing Operation (HLO) of Census-2027 is scheduled to be conducted across Jammu and Kashmir from June 1 to June 30, 2026, and a large number of government employees, particularly teachers and field-level officials, have been appointed as Enumerators and Supervisors under the provisions of the Census Act, 1948.
The circular, issued by Commissioner/Secretary GAD M. Raju, stated that census duties are statutory in nature and must be carried out within prescribed timelines to ensure successful completion of the national exercise. It reiterated the roles and responsibilities of Supervisors and Enumerators as outlined by the Office of the Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India.
According to the circular, Supervisors have been tasked with overseeing technical setup, ensuring training and readiness of Enumerators, verifying field boundaries, monitoring data validation, checking field coverage, supervising operations related to houseless populations and ensuring timely submission of records and reports.
Enumerators, meanwhile, have been assigned responsibilities including installation and registration on the official census application, preparation of layout maps, structural numbering of buildings, door-to-door data collection, verification of self-enumeration records and ensuring complete coverage of all households within their assigned areas. They have also been directed to undertake revision rounds and maintain paper-based backups where required.
The government warned that under Section 11 of the Census Act, 1948, any Census Officer, including Enumerators and Supervisors, who refuses to perform census duties, neglects responsibilities, engages in misconduct during fieldwork or tampers with census records, shall be liable to imprisonment of up to three years and a fine of up to Rs 1,000.
Besides legal action, the circular said disciplinary proceedings may also be initiated under the Jammu and Kashmir Government Employees (Conduct) Rules. Such action may include adverse entries in service records, salary deductions, withholding of promotions and increments, departmental proceedings, suspension or even termination in cases of habitual dereliction of duty.
The government has asked all Administrative Secretaries, Divisional Commissioners, Deputy Commissioners and Heads of Departments to provide full cooperation and administrative support to officials engaged in census work. It also directed controlling officers to suitably regulate work schedules to facilitate timely discharge of census responsibilities.
The circular stated that all concerned departments must accord priority to Census-2027-related matters and extend necessary support to the Directorate of Census Operations, Jammu and Kashmir, for the successful completion of the House Listing Operation.
The instructions have been issued for strict and immediate compliance across the Union Territory.
