3 min readBengaluruApr 22, 2026 05:47 PM IST
Census 2027 is progressing at a snail’s pace in Bengaluru as 6,000 staffers have not turned up for enumeration work. The Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) corporations have set an April 24 deadline, after which defaulting staff face legal action.
In a statement, the five GBA corporation commissioners said, “The progress of census work in GBA by enumerators is slow and not satisfactory. There are 23,500 enumerators and 2,900 supervisors, out of which about 6,000 are unauthorisedly absent. Showcause notices, daily SMSes and call-outs to them are going on. Those who fail to report immediately will be issued no-work-no-pay, and orders of break-in-service, and the worst defaulters will face FIRs.”
The GBA launched self-enumeration for the national census, allowing residents to participate between April 1 and 15. However, fewer than 2 per cent of residents registered, according to the GBA. Door-to-door visits for the subsequent house-listing exercise have begun and will be completed by May 15.
However, the enumerators are complaining about excess workload. While the GBA initially told them each enumerator would be allotted 200 houses, the number has allegedly exceeded 300.
The enumerators also face issues with the mobile app for the house-listing operation. “Some are unaware that the mobile application requires a better operating system. Some teachers are still using old mobile phones. Others have borrowed phones from family or friends. However, some teachers in their 50s find it harder as they are not familiar with technology,” an official said.
The Bengaluru North City Corporation (BNCC) issued showcause notices on April 18 to 527 enumerators who failed to report for duty. Other city corporations have also issued notices to the absentees and threatened them with FIRs.
The BNCC said a criminal case would be filed against the absentees under Section 11 of the Census Act and Section 223 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita. This is in addition to the no-work-no-pay order, suspension, and disciplinary action as per service rules.
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Meanwhile, the Bengaluru Central City Corporation has invited enumerators for the census. Candidates must have passed Class 12 and have smartphones equipped with Android 12 or above and 4GB of RAM. Preference will be given to residents of CV Raman Nagar, Shantinagar, Shivajinagar, Chamarajpet, Chikkapete, and Gandhinagar.
An official from the city corporation said that in the first phase (up to May 15), enumerators would receive an honorarium of Rs 9,000 and need to cover around 150-200 households. The honorarium would be increased to Rs 16,000 in the second phase, to be conducted in February 2027.
The corporation expects to hire 1,000 to 1,100 enumerators.
Karnataka is among the eight states and Union Territories where the census was launched on April 1.
