National Population Register (NPR) Explained

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The National Population Register (NPR) is a Register of usual residents of the country. It is being prepared at the local (Village/sub-Town), sub-District, District, State and National level under provisions of the Citizenship Act 1955 and the Citizenship (Registration of Citizens and issue of National Identity Cards) Rules, 2003. It is mandatory for every usual resident of India to register in the NPR. A usual resident is defined for the purposes of NPR as a person who has resided in a local area for the past 6 months or more or a person who intends to reside in that area for the next 6 months or more.

National Population Register

The NPR, a register of residents of the country with demographic and biometric details , was supposed to be prepared between April 2020 and September 2020 ahead of the census slated for 2021. NPR collects basic demographic data and biometric particulars. Once the basic details of the head of the family are taken by the enumerator, an acknowledgement slip will be issued. This slip may be required for enrolment in NPR, whenever that process begins.

Objective of National Population Register

The objective of the National Population Register is to create a comprehensive identity database of every usual resident in the country. The database would contain demographic as well as biometric particulars.

Demographic Particulars

The following demographic details of every individual are required for every usual resident:

  • Name of person
  • Relationship to head of household
  • Father’s name
  • Mother’s name
  • Spouse’s name (if married)
  • Sex
  • Date of Birth
  • Marital status
  • Place of birth
  • Nationality (as declared)
  • Present address of usual residence
  • Duration of stay at present address
  • Permanent residential address
  • Occupation/Activity
  • Educational qualification

Current Status of NPR

The process of updating NPR will be carried out under the aegis of the Registrar General and ex-Officio Census Commissioner, India. The data for National Population Register was collected in 2010 along with the house listing phase of Census of India 2011. The updation of this data was done during 2015 by conducting door to door survey. The digitisation of the updated information has been completed. Now it has been decided to update the National Population Register along with the House listing phase of Census 2021 during April to September 2020 in all the States/UTs except Assam. A Gazette notification to this effect has already been published by the Central Government.

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