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Census 2026 in Manipur Deferred Amid NRC Demands
A recent high-level meeting in Delhi agrees to defer the Census exercise in Manipur, citing the feelings and aspirations of the people of the State. The deferral occurs amid demands to conduct Manipur’s National Register of Citizens (NRC) exercise with 1951 as the base year, and related petitions before the Manipur High Court.
Census and NRC in Manipur:
| Dimension | Key Details |
|---|---|
| Groups Raising Demand | The demand is raised by sections of Meiteis Pangals (Meitei Muslims) and Naga groups. |
| Legal Intervention | Petitions filed before the Manipur High Court seek directions to: update or revise the NRC using 1951 as the base year; address concerns about illegal migration from Myanmar; conduct the Census only after resolving these issues. |
| Key Issues Linked to Census | The Census is increasingly associated with broader societal concerns, including: migration, identity, demographic change, citizenship, ethnic tensions, and political representation. |
| Authority to Order Census | The Union Government authorises a census via a notification in the official Gazette. |
| Operationalisation (Census) | The Office of the Registrar General and Census Commissioner, under the Ministry of Home Affairs, operationalises the Census. |
| Legal Framework | The Census is governed by the Census Act, 1948. |
| Constitutional Placement | The Census comprises a Union List subject as per the 7th Schedule of the Indian Constitution. |
| NRC | The NRC is an official record that documents individuals recognised as Indian citizens or residents based on established eligibility criteria. |
| NRC (Origin) | The origins of the NRC trace to India’s first Census conducted after Independence in 1951. |
| NRC (State Coverage) | All States are mandated to compile an NRC, but it is done only in Assam. |