Archive · 1 Sep 2026
Population Enumeration Begins in Snow-Bound Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh
Officials have started counting people for Census 2027 in snowy and hard-to-reach parts of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.
The first field work began in Dudu and Basantgarh in Udhampur district.
Workers are preparing maps, supplies and teams so that every household can be reached.
Sixteen districts in Jammu and Kashmir are included in this phase.
The whole of Ladakh is also being counted during September.
Before field workers arrived, people could fill in their information online through Self-Enumeration.
In total, 10,199 households in the two Union Territories used that option.
Officials will also count people who do not have homes.
Census 2027 population enumeration has begun in snow-bound areas of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.
Field operations were launched in Dudu and Basantgarh in Jammu and Kashmir’s Udhampur district.
Sixteen Jammu and Kashmir districts will be covered through an estimated 4,146 Enumeration Blocks.
The entire Union Territory of Ladakh is being enumerated through an estimated 637 Enumeration Blocks.
A total of 10,199 households used Self-Enumeration before the field phase, while houseless residents will also be counted.
- Who
- The Directorate of Census Operations, Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, led by Chief Principal Census Officer Amit Sharma, is conducting the enumeration.
- What
- Population Enumeration, Phase II of Census 2027, has begun in snow-bound areas, including a count of the houseless population.
- When
- Field enumeration began in September; Self-Enumeration was conducted from August 17 to 31, 2026.
- Where
- The exercise covers 16 districts of Jammu and Kashmir and the entire Union Territory of Ladakh, with field operations launched in Dudu and Basantgarh in Udhampur district.
- Why
- The operation aims to include every household and resident in remote, high-altitude and difficult-to-access areas.
- Jammu and Kashmir coverage
- 16 districts, 95 Charges and an estimated 4,146 Enumeration Blocks.
- Ladakh coverage
- The entire Union Territory, through an estimated 637 Enumeration Blocks.
- Launch locations
- Dudu and Basantgarh in Udhampur district.
- Self-Enumeration period
- August 17–31, 2026.
- Self-Enumeration submissions
- Jammu and Kashmir recorded 9,672 submissions; Ladakh recorded 527, for a combined 10,199 households.
- Ladakh submissions
- Kargil recorded 301 Self-Enumeration submissions and Leh recorded 226.
- Additional population covered
- The houseless population will also be enumerated during the September exercise.