Amit Sharma Takes Charge as Director of Census Operations for J&K and Ladakh
Senior IAS officer appointed to oversee Census 2027 preparations in the Union Territories
NEW DELHI, Dec 4: Senior IAS officer Amit Sharma has been appointed as the Director of Census Operations and Citizen Registration for the Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, the Union Home Ministry announced on Wednesday.
The 2012-batch AGMUT cadre officer will hold the post from November 24, 2025, until December 31, 2025, or until further orders. Sharma will be based in Srinagar and will oversee preparations for the upcoming Census 2027.
“The President is pleased to appoint Shri Amit Sharma as Director of Census Operations/Director of Citizen Registration for J&K and Ladakh on central deputation under the Central Staffing Scheme,” the government order said.
Census 2027 will be conducted in two phases. The first phase, covering House Listing and Housing Census, will take place between April and September 2026, allowing states and UTs flexibility to schedule fieldwork over a 30-day period. The second phase, population enumeration, is slated for February 2027 with a reference date of March 1, 2027. For Ladakh and snow-bound regions of J&K, enumeration will be conducted in September 2026, with a reference date of October 1, 2026.
The Census 2027 will mark the first nationwide enumeration in 16 years, following the last census in 2011. Over 30 lakh enumerators and supervisors are expected to be deployed for this massive exercise. Preparations for the earlier Census, scheduled for April 2020, were halted due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
