Ahead of Census 2027, Centre brings data centres under critical information infrastructure

Hyderabad: With the increase in digital tools for Census 2027 preparations, the Central government has designated data centres across the country as ‘Critical Information Infrastructure’. The move is aimed at putting in place high-end data security measures to protect the personal data being collected.

The Press Trust of India published a news alert in a tweet on X on Monday. The text said, “Data centres have been declared as Critical Information Infrastructure to ensure data security during Census: RGI.”

Mritunjay Kumar Narayan, IAS, Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India (RGI), made the announcement as part of the preparations for the Census 2027 rollout.

How are data centres crucial?

According to a report by PwC, ‘data centres are key enablers to the digital revolution, making our data centre industry globally competitive. In India, transforming Government services, enabling the data centre industry in India faces several hurdles, such as remote work and education, and fostering start-ups, such as navigating complex regulatory frameworks and innovation.’

The report stated that security measures in data centres are important to safeguard sensitive data and ensure the integrity and availability of services. “Regular security audits, vulnerability assessments, and adherence to industry standards and regulatory requirements are integral for maintaining robust security in data centres,” the report stated.

What is Census 2027?

As per news reports in January, the house-listing exercise is to begin from April across several states, including Telangana, between April 1 and September 30.

The RGI recently said that the census preparations are at an advanced stage. The Director of Census Operations and the Director of Economics & Statistics have been tasked with overseeing the technical and logistical aspects of the process within Telangana.

The last population census was carried out in 2011 in two phases:

1. House Listing

2. Population Enumeration

The same process will be followed now, also.

Digital change

As per the latest announcement by the RGI, census data was collected on paper schedules, and its digitisation through scanning and uploading took time. “But this time, since it’s all in a digital mode, most of the data will be published in the year 2027,” he said.

‘Individual data to remain confidential’

In a press conference on Monday, Mritunjay Kumar Narayan assured that the individual data will remain confidential and cannot be used as evidence or to get benefits under any scheme.

“All the individual data collected during the exercise remains confidential. It cannot be shared under the Right to Information Act, used as evidence in a court and cannot be shared with any organisation, be it government or private,” he said, as per a news report.

According to the presentation, individual data will remain confidential under Section 15 of the Census Act, 1948, and end-to-end data security measures will be in place, including secure transmission, audited systems and data centres designated as Critical Information Infrastructure.