Orissa prepares for census

BHUBANESWAR - Preparations for the first phase of census 2011, a massive administrative exercise, have got under way in Orissa, officials said Friday.

“As part of this, house listing will be conducted in the state from April 7 to May 22 this year,” Bishnupada Sethi, director, census operations, Orissa, told IANS.

The first conference of the senior officials who will function as principal census officers in the state is being held Friday in the state secretariat, he said.

“Along with housing census, specific information will also be collected through enumerators for preparation of the national population register,” he said.

“During the first phase, a comprehensive data base for assessing the living conditions in human settlements will be prepared, which will indicate a possible housing deficit and future housing requirements,” he said.

“So also, data on certain amenities like drinking water, lighting, latrine, kitchen, fuel for cooking, radio, transistor, computer, laptop, telephone, mobile, bicycle, scooter, motorcycle, moped, car, jeep, van and banking services will also be collected,” he said.

“In this process, 73,702 enumerators, 12,284 supervisors will be engaged in the state,” he said. According to the last census in 2001, the population of Orissa was nearly 37 million.

The current census is 15th since it began in 1872. It is conducted every 10 years.