Indian Holocaust My Father`s Live and Time- Three Hundred Eighty Four
Palash Biswas
http://indianholocaustmyfatherslifeandtime.blogspot.com/
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I have been writing and speaking about the hidden agenda of Unique Identity Number Project headed by India Incs Boss south Indian Brahmin nandan Nilekani. Bharat Mukti Morcha has been campaigning for OBC Headcount which is pressed for OBC Political leaders as well as Developed communities like the Jats. Intelligentsia is VERTICALLY divided on caste line while Civil Society, NGOs and Media has launched a campaign against Caste Census with intense Hatred and Misinformation Tornado fueled by RSS and MNCs!
Indians may get their identity numbers earlier than expectedThe National Population Register is aiming to collect data by August 2011, reports MINT.
Indians may get their unique identity (UID) numbers earlier than expected.
The National Population Register (NPR) is aiming to collect biometric data of the country's entire population—on which the UID project, known as Aadhaar, is based—by August 2011.
"The NPR will start collecting biometrics from September," said R.S. Sharma, director general of the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI), the project's nodal agency. "If they finish it in a year, we can allocate unique numbers sooner than envisaged."
Pronab Sen, the chief statistician of India, said the NPR's target of collecting biometric data in a year is realistic.
"It's quite possible. They have 2.5 million people on the job and have taken an additional five months this time to collate the data due to the NPR," Sen said.
UIDAI had earlier announced it will issue the numbers on UID cards to some 600 million Indians by 2014. The first set of numbers are to be allocated between August-February 2011.
The registrar general of India, which is creating the NPR as part of the decennial census, has an agreement with Aadhaar to source biometric data such as facial recognition features, fingerprints and eye scans from across the country. The data will be shared by Aadhaar and the census.
Canvassing and house-listing for the census began in April. It will cover all 29 states and union territories in a phased manner.
"For each state, the exercise is targeted to be completed within 45 days, to be followed by biometric and photography visits required for publication of the NPR," a home ministry official said.
The NPR has already collected biographical details of nearly 11.5 million Indians and the biometrics of around 6 million people in the coastal areas, another ministry official said. Both requested anonymity.
"The NPR for coastal areas will be completed in the remaining two states of Maharashtra and West Bengal by June 2010," the second official said.
The cabinet allocated Rs3,539.24 crore in March for creating the NPR.
Sharma said once the biometrics are collected, UIDAI will only have to process the date and make sure there is no duplication before allotting the UID numbers.
"The most uphill task of this entire project is getting the data (both biometric and demographic) of the entire country," he said.
"Once UIDAI has access to that data, the processing will not take much time," said another UIDAI official, who declined to be named.
The official added the current capacity of the UID servers to process the data is in line with the announced target—600 million numbers in four years. "However, the capacity can be scaled up easily to match the supply."
Sahil Makkar contributed to this story.
http://www.livemint.com/2010/06/03222429/Indians-may-get-their-identity.html?atype=tpLatest News
The Indian Census is the most credible source of information on Demography (Population characteristics), Economic Activity, Literacy & Education, Housing & Household Amenities, Urbanization, Fertility and Mortality, Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, Language, Religion, Migration, Disability and many other socio-cultural and demographic data since 1872. Census 2011 will be the 15th National Census of the country.
Official Link : http://censusindia.gov.in/
This is the only source of primary data at village, town and ward level. It provides valuable information for planning and formulation of polices for Central & State Governments and is widely used by National & International agencies, scholars, business people, industrialists, and many more.
The delimitation/reservation of Constituencies – Parliamentary/Assembly/Panchayats and other Local Bodies is also done on the basis of the demographic data thrown up by the Census. Census is the basis for reviewing the country's progress in the past decade, monitoring the on-going schemes of the Government and most importantly, plan for the future.
Visit censusindia.gov.in for Frequently asked questions, Census 2011 countdown – Schedules, Manuals, Circulars / Presentations, Acts and Rules and online Data on Previous Census. The data collected will be subjected to de-duplication by the UIDAI. After de-duplication, the UIDAI will issue a UID Number.
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Now, an Economic Times report published today exposed further the Hidden Agenda as it turns to be ULTIMATE Assault: Census 2010 Reduced into Strategic market Research Initiative!
What can Census 2010 do for marketers and brands?
12 May 2010, 0641 hrs IST,Delshad Irani,ET Bureau Year 2001 was a long time ago. Back then India had a prime minister with a flair for poetry and Kashmir had its first local elections in 23 years. That year, interest rates were cut to their lowest level since 1973 and India was inducted into an emerging economic power quartet called BRIC. In 2001, IPL when expanded read Indian Poverty Line, India beat Australia (after a match-fixing scandal) in a test series and Kolkata was Calcutta. In 2001, TV show 'Kaun Banega Crorepati' kept 'Slumdog Millionaire' dreams alive; over 290 million lived in India's urban cities, the mobile subscriber count stood at 45 million and 7 million were registered as Internet users. It was also the year India became the second nation in the world to register one billion people in its population. The first was China. Crossing the billion mark officially was particularly significant considering 2001 was the year India carried out its 14th decennial census. A decade later, India is a story of opposites and complexities therefore earning the tag countries within a country. From a middle class with high disposable income, to one of the fastest growing mobile telephony markets, the Indian economy is certainly poised for consistent growth in the years to come. Yet there's a widening chasm between richer and rich and poor. Amidst it all, India readies for its 15th decennial census , considered to be the biggest ever exercise of its kind in human history — with nearly 2.5 million officials aiming to classify a population of 1.2 billion people. Such a collosal national database is of obvious interest to the government as it becomes a framework for an array of policies and developmental work initiated at the centre and at state level. However, this categorisation that takes into account demographics, socio-cultural nuances, religion, urbanisation and economic parameters is also of immense interest to marketers of products and brands. According to Rajeev Sharma, national brand planning director, Leo Burnett, "Clearly we need to look at the census much more sharply than we have been in the past. At the rate the country is evolving we need sharper definitions of Indian consumers ." For the first time, the census will incorporate information on parameters like ownership of mobile phones, computers, internet access, having treated or untreated drinking water and usage of banking services. Data collected on these fronts could redefine projections and revolutionise the way marketers evaluate the potential of regions and segments. Second, and more importantly the census will be the foundation for the National Population Register (NPR) — all Indians above 15 years will be photographed and fingerprinted to create a biometric national database. |
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Marketing strategies: How to engage a customer
Consumers , more now than ever, are inundated with marketing messages nearly every moment of their waking day. Therefore they are becoming more selective and demanding of the messaging with which they choose to engage. Their attention span and willingness to interact with marketing continues to decrease. The result is the constant increase of complexity of marketing , since any marketer is tremendously challenged by the increasing number of marketing moments and the decreasing ability to truly engage a customer.Many marketing agencies try to meet this "Modern Marketing Conundrum" by either solely focusing on satisfying the ever-changing demands of their clients or by building the most outrageous and disruptive marketing ideas without data and an insight-driven foundation. What is common is the lack of a consumer-centric operating system that any great marketing services company needs to solve this conundrum.
The foundation of our operating principle was proprietary research to understand how consumers engage with any marketing message, independent of the communication channel. We wanted to determine the duration of the particular moment of opportunity to capture the average consumer's attention in today's environment, broken down by different media channels, industry categories, and segment attributes . Our goal was to build a global norm database to help us better evaluate and understand our work across all key channels.
From a research perspective we needed to answer a few critical questions: How much time does a consumer allow a marketing element before he/she decides whether or not it matters to them? What are the differences in the decision times across all media and marketing channels? Across all categories? Across all consumer attributes (e.g., age, income)? How are they making their decisions on what matters and what doesn't matter to them, and what are the implications for brands?
Experience has taught us that every one of our ads faces two critical moments when exposed to a consumer. 1) The Lean Moment: the point at which the consumer decides either to engage (lean in) or disengage (lean out) with the ad. 2) The Decision Moment: the point at which the consumer makes a personal assessment of whether the ad's message resonates with them (matters) or whether it rings hollow (does not matter).
The time lapse in between the Lean Moment and the Decision Moment is the window of opportunity where we can influence the decision — the time period we call the "6.5 Seconds That Matter."
It is the "6.5 Seconds That Matter." It is the foundation of the inseparable union of accountability and creativity enabling us to do breakthrough and profitable work for our clients.
BASED ON THIS METHODOLOGY, WE CONDUCTED A GLOBAL RESEARCH PROJECT IN WHICH WE INTERVIEWED CLOSE TO 2,000 CONSUMERS.
Our results are now the cornerstone of our operating system:
The average weighted time that consumers will give us before making their decision is 6.5 seconds across all media channels
The average percentage of marketing elements in which consumers:
Leaned in and decided it mattered to them was around 45%
Leaned out was approximately 28%
Leaned in and decided it did not matter to them was nearly 27% by Media Channel
The two highest-scoring channels (TV and OOH) provide vastly different windows of opportunity. Consumers allot TV ads more time to "matter" after they lean in (11.1 seconds) than OOH ads (2.9 seconds).
TV ads achieve the highest "Leaned In & Mattered" score (53%), followed by OOH & Print (47%), Web (42%), and Radio (40%).
CPG-HHP & Restaurant ads achieve the highest "Leaned In & Mattered" scores (56% and 49% respectively). Communication & Insurance ads were the lowest (40% and 32% respectively).
Older consumers provide us with a bit more time to achieve a "matters" decision than their younger counterparts (7.3 seconds vs. 6.4 seconds), while the younger consumers require earlier engagement.
Michael Fassnacht, Global Chief Strategy Officer Draft FCB. He is scheduled to speak at Cannes 2010
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/features/brand-equity/Marketing-strategies-How-to-engage-a-customer/articleshow/6001262.cms
Times of India reports:
The government, keen to meet its ambitious plan of allocating unique numbers to all residents, is likely to set up a high-powered committee to ensure coordination among agencies dealing with the exercise.
Sources said the move aims to avoid duplication and confusion between the Nandan Nilekani-led Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) and home ministry's National Population Register (NPR) during the census exercise.
There are apprehensions in the government that UIDAI's proposal to collect data from multiple registrars -- agencies of central and state governments like rural development department, PDS department, LIC, LPG agencies and banks -- along with NPR may lead to "huge" duplication.
While the Cabinet committee on UID has decided to use all 10 fingerprints, an iris scan and a photograph of the person for unique identification to enhance accuracy, it is argued that with UIDAI having multiple registrars and several enrolment points, the "accuracy" aspect may be diluted.
UIDAI has argued that in a country with a huge population, a mix of biometric and photographic record is necessary to ensure reliability of information.
With Cabinet giving its in-principle approval to guidelines for setting up the UID database, the committee will help in smooth rollout of unique numbers to billion-plus residents.
With the government keen to ensure that the crores being pumped into welfare schemes reach the `aam aadmi', UIDAI intends to issue unique numbers to the poor and children on priority and without any charge.
As the authority intended to help identify beneficiaries of UPA's flagship schemes, children between ages 5 and 15 will be included in view of the ambitious Right to Education.
Under the scheme, the government is aiming for 600 million users by 2014.
In the government's report card on Tuesday, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh termed the UID project a platform for direct transfer of benefits and subsidies to the poor.
Describing the project as an important instrument to expand financial inclusion, the PM said, "The Unique ID project is progressing well and I am hopeful that the first set of `Aadhaar' numbers will be issued between August 2010 and February 2011."
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Coordination-panel-for-smooth-rollout-of-unique-numbers/articleshow/6000260.cms
The Mint Report for 01 June 2010
The government is all set to start the process of identifying families below the poverty line. Pilot projects are going to start next month in 260 villages across the country. We've learnt that the villages chosen are from all across the country. And they include four from every agricultural-climatic region. The government expects to get results from the pilot projects by March of next year. Its full-scale survey of below the poverty line families will then begin in April.
At the heart of the proposed survey of India's poor is a disagreement over numbers. India's Planning Commission estimates the country's BPL population at 62.5 million. But the rural development ministry says that number is more like 107 million. The ministry set up a panel to resolve the conflicting numbers. Now its pilot census of below poverty line families will put that panel's criteria to the test.
May has been a good month for auto sales. India's top car makers did good business, with Maruti Suzuki's local sales increasing 27% to more than 90,000 vehicles. Domestic sales for Hyundai Motor India sped up 13% to more than 27,000. And Tata Motors sold 38% more vehicles this May, a total of nearly 53,000 cars, trucks and other vehicles.
Two-wheeler sales stayed on the fast lane as well. Hero Honda's increased to 436,000 units, an increase of 14%. And Bajaj Auto's India sales accelerated 63% to nearly 270,000 two-wheelers.
Markets broke a four-day rally Tuesday on troubling economic news. Data showing a slowdown in Chinese factory output took their toll on European shares, and Indian markets followed suit. The Sensex plummeted 373 points to close at 16,572. And the Nifty lost 116 points to end the day at 4,970.
http://www.livemint.com/2010/06/01234848/The-Mint-Report-for-01-June-20.htmlCaste census: After Maken, Moily ticked off?Times of India - May 29, 2010 NEW DELHI: A day after after it disapproved of minister of state for home Ajay Maken's letter to party MPs seeking to mobilize them against caste-based ... Moily wanted caste census, Registrar General said noIndian Express - May 29, 2010 Much before the controversial caste-based census issue was referred to a Group of Ministers (GoM) last week, the Office of the Registrar General (ORG) which ... Moily told to clam up on caste censusHindustan Times - May 29, 2010 The Congress's top leadership on Saturday conveyed to Law Minister Veerappa Moily not to air his views on the caste census in public, seeking to end to the ... Caste conundrumSify - May 29, 2010 And here's the latest on the caste-and-census conundrum. It now transpires that, shaken by the number of castes in our country (30000, at last count), ... Caste in Indian census will set clock back (Comment)Sify - May 28, 2010 That caste has been one of the most divisive forces for centuries has never been in doubt. Its segmentation of Indian society into various mutually ... Cong slams Maken letter on censusIndian Express - May 28, 2010 The Congress on Friday disapproved of Union Minister of State for Home Ajay Maken's letter to young MPs asking them to oppose inclusion of caste in the ... Maken's letter to young MPs draws Congress ireTimes of India - May 28, 2010 NEW DELHI: Union Cabinet may have, for all practical purposes, decided to include caste as an enumerating criterion in the ongoing census but the issue ... Congress leadership pulls up Maken for writing letter opposing caste censusThe Hindu - - May 28, 2010 The Congress leadership has taken a serious view of Union Minister of State for Home Ajay Maken writing to young MPs, cutting across party lines, ... Chorus for talks louder after Maken letterHindustan Times - May 28, 2010 There are growing voices in the Congress for a discussion within the party on the caste-based census issue that the Group of Ministers (GoM) will look into. ... Caste census is in downtrodden's interests: MulayamSify - May 28, 2010 Samajwadi Party president Mulayam Singh Yadav Friday reiterated his support for a caste-based census, terming it to be in the 'larger interest of the ... | Timeline of articles Number of sources covering this story
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Countdown begins for 2010 census - Worldnews.com
8 Mar 2010 ... Back to the Future Ride Begins Final Countdown, Part 1 .... The Times of India: 'In terms of history, our census is the oldest' ...
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30 Mar 2010 ... The countdown to the start of the exercise is now down to five hours. The government says everything is in .... The Hindu: Food Bill final draft after BPL estimates .... Marine census 2010 to begin on April 162010-03-30 ...
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Elephant census ends in UP. 27 May 2010. Archana Srivastava ... While the final countdown report is expected to be out within a fortnight, this census ...
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1 Apr 2010 ... India begins population census. 2010-04-02 03:10:01 GMT2010-04-02 11:10:01 (Beijing Time) ... 230-day countdown to Shanghai World Expo; 3'Green wall' helps curb desertification; 4US stocks fall on final day of quarte . ...
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A final count of the tigers will be sent to the concerned National . ... Bangalore: The much awaited tiger census will begin on January 22, 2010, ...
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Is counting the caste good or bad? India is divided
India divided over question in census about caste identity
Column : Is a caste census at all sensible?
Caste clubs are vote banks
A system of discrimination
Why the UID number project must be scrapped
Activist Gopal Krishna makes a case that the Unique Identification Number project is a gross violation of fundamental human rights and points out that a similar project/law in Britain is going to be repealed.
This is with reference to a privacy invasion project which is relevant to India [ Images ] and all the democratic countries of the world. The very first bill that is to be presented by the UK's new coalition government in the British Parliament is to repeal its Identity Cards Act 2006 even as Government of India has chosen to give approval to Unique Identification Number project that threatens citizens' privacy. Clearly, what is poisonous for civil liberties in the UK cannot become non-poisonous in India.
If one takes cognisance of the claim that the 'UID system is a civilian application of biometrics' and compares it with current practices, one finds that such a claim is quite misplaced.
In the report there is reference to a study commissioned by the US Department of Homeland Security to International Biometrics Group. Will someone explain how manifest reference to such a study constitutes civilian application?
In our country, it is rarely noticed as to when the concept of massively organised information quietly emerged to become a means of social control, a weapon of war, and for the victimisation of ethnic groups. Nandan Nilekani, co-founder and former chief executive of Infosys Technologies Ltd [ Get Quote ], India's second largest software company, has misled the Government of India into making it believe that in a country with 48 percent illiteracy, a 12-digit card would be helpful in reaching the poorest of the poor.
The Unique Identification Number/Aadhar project that emerged from the constitution of Unique Identification Authority of India in January 2009 reminds one of what happened from the period preceding Adolf Hitler's [ Images ] arrival to January 1933 when he occupied power, to Second World War and since then. The way International Business Machines, the world's largest technology company and the second most valuable global brand, colluded with the Nazis to identify Jews for targeted asset confiscation, ghettoisation, deportation, and ultimately extermination to help Hitler with its punch card and card sorting system -- a precursor to the computer -- made the automation of human destruction possible is a matter of historical fact.
Unmindful of the lessons from Germany [ Images ] in particular and Europe in general, advancing the argument of targeting, it has been claimed on the floor of Parliament by the finance minister while presenting the 2010-11 Union Budget that the UID project 'would provide an effective platform for financial inclusion and targeted subsidy payments,' the same targeting measures can be used with vindictive motives against citizens of certain religion, caste and ethnicity or region or towards a section of society due to economic resentment.
Curiously, the finance minister and the head of UID/Aadhar project refer to financial inclusion and not about economic inclusion of the poor. Exclusion of certain sections of society for political reasons had led to the targeted massacre of 1947, 1984 and 2002 in India. If an exhaustive trans-disciplinary study is conducted it would reveal how privacy is closely connected to data protection and the same was readily available to perpetrators of riots, massacres and genocide in our country.
The UID project is going to do almost exactly the same thing which the predecessors of Hitler did, else how is it that Germany always had the lists of Jewish names even prior to the arrival of the Nazis? The Nazis got these lists with the help of IBM which was in the 'census' business that included racial census that entailed not only count the Jews but also identifying them. At the United States Holocaust Museum in Washington, DC, there is an exhibit of an IBM Hollerith D-11 card sorting machine that was responsible for organising the census of 1933 that first identified the Jews.
The Government of India cannot guarantee that in future, when the Nazis or some such sort come to power in India, they would not have access to UID for vindictive measures against certain sections of the citizenry. This is evidently the journey of 'identification' efforts from January 1933 to January 2009, when the UID Authority was announced.
The UID and National Population Register is all set to do what IBM did in Germany, Romania and in Europe and elsewhere through 'solutions' ranging from the census to providing list of names of Jews to Nazis. The UID has nothing to do with citizenship, it is merely an identification exercise.
Against such a backdrop, as concerned citizens, we welcome the progressive step by the new coalition government in the UK to scrap its controversial national identity card scheme in order to safeguard citizens' privacy and act against intrusions. The scrapping of the UK's ID project is planned to be done in the next 3-4 months. Besides repealing the Identity Cards Act 2006 and outlawing the finger-printing of children at school, the UK government would stop its National Identity Register and the next generation of biometric passports, the Contact Point database and end storage of Internet and email records.
But unlike the UK, the Government of India through a Press Information Bureau release dated May 18 has stated that 'the Cabinet Committee on Unique Identification Authority of India related issues today approved in principle the adoption of the approach outlined by UIDAI for collection of demographic and biometric attributes of residents (face, all ten fingerprints and iris) for the UID project. It was also decided to include data of the iris for children in the age group of 5 to 15 years. The same standards and processes would be adhered to by the Registrar General of India for the NPR exercise and all other registrars in the UID system.'
Not surprisingly, the government is feigning ignorance about the democratic movement against such efforts. In India too, there is a robust case against rejecting what has been rejected in the UK. The UID project is a blatant case of infringement of civil liberties. The government's identification exercise follows the path of the Information Technology Act 2000 that was enacted in the absence of no data or privacy protection legislation.
As is the case with the UID project, in the UK too the scheme has been vacillating from one claimed purpose to another. The project is being bulldozed in the name of poor by saying, 'Identity becomes a bottleneck if one wants to have a ration card, driving licence, passport, bank account or a mobile connection. It will enable poor residents to access multiple resources including education, health and financial services.'
Following the footprints of the UK's discredited project, it is being said that 'the identity number will help get a child admission in school.' Perhaps fearing abandonment of the project, in the aftermath of the UK government's decision, it is being now said that the Unique Identification Number is optional, not mandatory.
How is it that two democracies deal with the issue of ungovernable breaches of privacy differently? While the UK government is proactive in protecting the privacy of its citizens, the Government of India is ridiculing the very idea of privacy and civil liberties.
It is highly disturbing that at almost the same time, India's minority coalition government plans to do just the contrary with astounding disregard to citizens' privacy by stamping them with an UID number based on their biometric data. Such a 'surveillance' effort through the world's largest citizen identity project for 'creating a Unique Identity Number for every resident in India' undermines our democracy beyond repair.
Related to the UID number project is the NPR project. This is for the first time that the NPR is being prepared. The database will be built by the Registrar General of India. It is noteworthy that the census and NPR are different. The census is the biggest source of data on demography, literacy and education, housing and household amenities, economic activity, urbanisation, fertility, mortality, language, religion and migration. It serves as the primary data for planning and the implementation of policies of the central and state governments.
The NPR involves the creation of a comprehensive identity database for the country. It will include items of information such as the name of the person, father's name, mother's name, spouse's name, sex, date of birth, place of birth, current marital status, education, nationality as declared, occupation, present address of usual resident and permanent residential address. The database will also contain photograph and finger biometry of persons above the age of 15.
After the NPR database is finalised, the next task would be assigning every individual a UID. This number will be added to the NPR database. It is proposed to issue identity cards which will be a smart card with UID number printed on it and include basic details like name, mother's/father's name, sex, date and place of birth, photograph. Complete details will be stored in the chip.
Like in the UK, in India too there is a need for a similar measure to stop the efforts underway through the UIDAI to issue a UID number to every resident in the country. Issuing unique identity numbers to the 1.2 billion residents of India based on biometric data is fraught with hitherto unimaginable dangers of human rights violations. It has emerged that it all started rolling in the aftermath of a meeting of the empowered group of ministers on November 4, 2008, and a meeting of the prime minister's council of the UID Authority on August 12, 2009, wherein it was decided that there was a 'need for a legislative framework' akin to the UK's Identity Cards Act 2006 which is now being scrapped.
The 13th Finance Commission has made a provision for an incentive of Rs 100 per person (Rs 400-500 per family) to bribe citizens below the poverty line to register for the UID and has recommended a grant of Rs 2,989.10 crore to be given to the state governments for the same. The three states (Karnataka [ Images ], Madhya Pradesh [ Images ] and Andhra Pradesh) who have signed an MoU on their part have set up state-level committees to work as UIDAI registrars for collecting biometric samples like thumb impression or cornea configuration of each individual resident. Has there been any debate so far in the legislatures about the ramifications of a project which is all set to be scrapped in the UK?
As per the Authority's Office Memorandum signed by director general, UIDAI, dated September 29, 2009, 'The main objective is to improve benefits service delivery, especially to the poor and the marginalised sections of the society. To deliver its mandate, the UIDAI proposes to create a platform to first collect the identity details and then to perform authentication that can be used by several government and private service providers.'
The reference to private service providers is inexplicable, for the work is meant to be an exercise for public purpose and for the poor and the marginalised. The promise of service delivery to the poor and the marginalised hides how it will enable access to profit for the IT industry and the biometrics industry. Such claims are quite insincere, misleading and factually incorrect. It reminds one of the pledges in the Preamble of the Constitution of India, it will have us believe that the UID Authority would fulfil the constitutional promise of economic equality. Such objectives are bad sophistry at best.
This authority in turn set up a Biometrics Standards Committee in order 'to review existing standards and modify/extend/enhance them so as to achieve the goals and purpose for de-duplications and authentication' through framing biometrics standards for fingerprints, face and iris.
The authority defines biometrics as 'the science of establishing the identity of an individual based on the physical, chemical or behavioural attributes of the person.' Besides, photos of the face are commonly used in various types of identification cards, it is undertaking the use of fingerprints for identification and recording the iris, the annular region of the eye, bounded by the pupil and sclera on either side which is considered the most accurate biometric parameter.
The committee reveals that 'the biometrics will be captured for authentication by government departments and commercial organisations at the time of service delivery.' The commercial organisation mentioned herein is not defined.
The Biometrics Standards Committee refers to previous experiences of the US and Europe with biometrics. A technical sub-group was also formed that collected over 250,000 fingerprint images from 25,000 persons sourced from districts of Delhi [ Images ], UP, Bihar and Orissa for analysing Indian fingerprints. It may do the same for the iris and face as well to form a database size of 1.2 billion. It has been recommended that the 'biometrics data are national assets and must be preserved in their original quality.' The committee refers to citizens' database as a national asset.
Both the UID and NPR, through convergence, represent a case of the State and the 'market' tracking citizens for one reason or the other. It is benign neither in its design nor in its execution. The working paper of the UIDAI revealed that the 'UID number will only guarantee identity, not rights, benefits or entitlements'. It is also said that it would not even guarantee identity, it would only provide 'aid' in identification.
We support the campaign of the people' movements, mass organisations, institutions and concerned citizens and individuals who strongly oppose the potential tracking and profiling based techno-governance tools such as the UID number. We demand that Parliament or the Comptroller and Auditor General should probe the UID Authority's work from January 2009 till date.
In view of the above mentioned facts, we submit that the collection of such data is a classic case of gross violation of fundamental human rights. The Government of India should take prompt lessons from the UK government's decision to scrap its National ID project and desist from taking the path paved by IBM for the Holocaust and abandon its UID/Aadhar project.
Gopal Krishna is a member of the Citizens Forum for Civil Liberties.
Do you agree with the views expressed above? Or do you have a view to the contrary? Do let us know in the message board below.
http://news.rediff.com/column/2010/jun/02/why-the-uid-number-project-must-be-scrapped.htm
UPA-II loses momentum as challenges mount
Finally, we heard from the prime minister. Manmohan Singh [ Images ] rarely interacts with the media and even rarer are his attempts to reach out to the ordinary Indians, explaining to them why he is doing what he is doing.
Maybe that's the task that he has left for Sonia Gandhi [ Images ] and the heir apparent, Rahul Gandhi [ Images ]. But a vibrant democracy requires continued public engagement from its politicians and constant communication between the leader and the led.
The prime minister's message during his press conference marking the first anniversary of the UPA-II was not inspirational but rather a tad bureaucratic, suggesting that India [ Images ] must reach 10 percent economic growth in coming years and also improve relations with Pakistan if it wants to reduce poverty and make rapid progress.
His government took power last May amid great expectations but there has been little drive in its policy priorities so far. If the UPA-I was paralysed because of the shenanigans of coalition partners, in UPA-II it is Congress' internal battles that have taken the wind out of the sails of this government so early in its term. This is especially true on foreign and national security issues where the prime minister's authority has been openly and repeatedly questioned by the members of his party.
On Pakistan, while the government seems to have made up its mind on proceeding with talks with Islamabad [ Images ], it's not clear how the talks will proceed given public disenchantment with Pakistan's behaviour. The prime minister has staked his personal prestige on improving ties with Pakistan and he has underlined the need to deal with the trust deficit between the two sides if peace process is to have any meaning at all.
Singh and his Pakistani counterpart (Yousuf Raza Gilani [ Images ]) had agreed to resume peace talks on the sidelines of the SAARC summit last month. But the day the Prime Minister's Office revealed its plans to send 20 kilos of handpicked Alphonso mangoes to the Pakistani prime minister, Pakistan's Supreme Court upheld the decision of the Lahore [ Images ] high court to release Hafiz Mohammad Saeed, founder of the Lashkar-e-Tayiba [ Images ]. India was left merely expressing its disappointment over the decision to let the mastermind of the Mumbai [ Images ] carnage go scot free.
India-Pakistan talks are also happening in the context of growing external pressure on India to resume these talks. The Indian diplomatic debacle at the London [ Images ] conference on Afghanistan earlier this year has forced a major rethink of Delhi's [ Images ] Af-Pak policy. The first step has been to restart talks with Pakistan. While these talks may fail to produce anything concrete in the near future, the hope is that it will stave off pressure from the US to engage Islamabad.
Therefore, even though negotiations with Pakistan remain hugely unpopular at home, the Indian government has decided to proceed. India hopes that by doing so, it will be seen as a more productive player in the West's efforts at stabilising Afghanistan. It is unlikely though that this is going to happen as the West's sole concern right now is to find a face-saving exit formula in Afghanistan, and Pakistan remains central to achieving that goal.
India is debating its options in Afghanistan in a strategic space that seems to have shrunk over the last few years. By failing to craft its own narrative on Af-Pak ever since US troops went into Afghanistan in the aftermath of September 11, 2001, New Delhi has allowed the West, and increasingly Pakistan, to dictate the contours of Indian policy towards the region.
A fundamental disconnect has emerged between US and Indian interests in Af-Pak. The Barack Obama [ Images ] administration has been systematically ignoring Indian interests in the crafting of its Af-Pak priorities. While actively discouraging India from assuming a higher profile in Afghanistan, for fear of offending Pakistan, the US has failed to persuade Pakistan into taking Indian concerns more seriously.
Anxious for some kind of victory, the West has decided to court the 'good' Taliban [ Images ] with Pakistan's help. This has underlined Islamabad's centrality in the unfolding strategic dynamic in the region, much to India's discomfiture. By pursuing a strategy that will give Pakistan the leading role in the state structures in Afghanistan, the West, however, is only sowing the seeds for future regional turmoil.
While the US may have no vital interest in determining who actually governs in Afghanistan, so long as the Afghan territory is not being used to launch attacks on US soil, India does. The consequence of abandoning the goal to establish a functioning Afghan state and a moderate Pakistan will be greater pressure on Indian security. To preserve its interests in such a strategic milieu, India is rather belatedly reaching out to states like Russia [ Images ] and Iran but has found it difficult to convey to the US its displeasure regarding the changing priorities of Washington.
As India struggles to come to terms with its troubled neighbourhood, China is making its presence felt across the globe with splash. Yet, India's China policy remains in doldrums. Union Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh [ Images ] ends up accusing the Indian government (of which he is a part) of being "overly defensive and alarmist" in dealing with Chinese companies. According to him, the warming of ties between China and India as a consequence of their collaboration on global climate change negotiations was being harmed by the "suspicious attitude" of the Indian security establishment. Ramesh challenged his government's policy on a foreign soil, in essence suggesting that its is the Chinese government that is right when it underscores time and again that India, not China, is responsible for the recent downward spiral in Sino-Indian ties. It's indeed a remarkable achievement for a government minister that he ends up giving ammunition to an adversary that has left no stone unturned in challenging India's rise at every possible forum.
Meanwhile, the internal security situation in the country has gone from bad to worse. The UPA-II has failed to make even the slightest difference to India's precarious internal security situation. The prime minister during his press conference denied that the government had underestimated the Maoists, noting that for the past three years he has called them India's gravest internal security threat. But that's clearly not enough. He must first get his party behind him if he wants to take on the Maoists.
Home Minister P Chidambaram's [ Images ] detractors within the Congress are more interested in neutralising him than in confronting the Maoists. Congress General Secretary Digvijay Singh [ Images ] has not only public questioned Chidambaram's approach in tackling Naxalism but has also attacked him for not knowing the terrain of the area. He has openly demanded a rethink of the government's strategy of fighting Naxalism and accused Chidambaram of 'intellectual arrogance'.
The war against the Maoists cannot be won without depriving it of the oxygen of partisan politics. And it is important that the government speaks in one voice. The Naxalites [ Images ] have figured out that they are dealing with a political leadership which had already committed a self-goal by equating counter offensives against Naxalites with tribal alienation and which had in the process totally demoralised the security forces, who are dying in large number while the political class can pontificate from their air-conditioned rooms.
The Congress' 206 parliamentary seats in last year's election had unleashed a wave of optimism but that feel-good mood is now a thing of the past. One year into its term, the UPA-II seems to have lost its way and momentum. The prime minister makes no effort to create and mould public opinion to help him in governance and in support of his policies. Moreover, the Congress needs to hold an honest conversation with itself before it can embark any further in tackling this nation's challenges. It would be well advised not to waste an opportunity that the people of India gave it last year.
Harsh V Panthttp://news.rediff.com/column/2010/may/26/upa-loses-momentum-as-challenges-mount.htm
Census: Teachers go to HC against govt
Times of India - 17 hours ago... from pulse polio drive and election duties to the ongoing census exercise, ... Election Commission of India or from authorities concerned as and when a ...Teachers move court against compulsory census, poll work - Sify
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Census 2011 may prove a must-have tool for marketers
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Economic Times - 19 hours agoWe would love to see several PhD students in India doing PhDs around this data across a variety of disciplines. Some bits of information move slowly or ...Census Caste Debate
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Indians may get their identity numbers earlier than expectedThe ...
Livemint - Surabhi Agarwal - Sahil Makkar - 19 hours ago
The registrar general of India, which is creating the NPR as part of the decennial census, has an agreement with Aadhaar to source biometric data such as ...Why the UID number project must be scrapped - Rediff
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Speaker Meira Kumar against caste-based census
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Census question over caste identity divides India
The Associated Press - Tim Sullivan - 27 May 2010
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Census, Caste and Reservation: Need for a pragmatic approach - India Talkies
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Morning Must Reads -- Census jobs mask hiring dip
Washington Examiner (blog) - Chris Stirewalt - 1 hour ago
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Asian Age - 12 hours agoTalking to this newspaper, Census Commissioner and Registrar General of India, Dr C. Chandramouli, said that as against the 2001 census, this time the slums ...Count caste in this census to annihilate it
Economic Times - 1 day agoThe single-most important lesson offered by the history of independent India is that caste awareness is the only viable route to the true abolition of caste ...
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Sharad Yadav castes doubt on govtEconomic Times - May 27, 2010 NEW DELHI: The government's decision to set up a group of ministers (GoM) on including caste in the on-going census exercise drew flak from JD(U) chief ... PM puts lid on caste count by setting up GoM on modalitiesTimes of India - - May 27, 2010 NEW DELHI: After a short but intense debate at Wednesday's Cabinet meeting,Prime Minister Manmohan Singh settled the question whether to include caste in ... BJP may have second thoughts on caste census?The Hindu - - May 27, 2010 NEW DELHI:The Bharatiya Janata Party seems to be hoping to paper over its differences with its parent body, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, on the issue of ...
MoS Maken asks young MPs to oppose caste censusIndian Express - May 27, 2010 Giving a fresh twist to the caste headcount controversy, a new pressure group of young MPs — aligned against caste-based Census — appears to be in the ... 'Top UPA leaders backed caste census'Indian Express - May 27, 2010 Reacting sharply to the government decision to refer the caste census issue to a Cabinet sub-committee, Janata Dal (United) president Sharad Yadav said here ... Cong gives nod to include caste data in censusBusiness Standard - May 27, 2010 The Congress brass has decided to include caste-wise data as a part of the government's ongoing exercise to compile the census details by 2011. ... Avoid caste in census, says minister MakenHindustan Times - - May 27, 2010 In a surprise yet bold intervention in the ongoing debate, Minister of State for Home Ajay Maken has opposed the demand for caste-based census in an "open ... Churning in the Congress over caste censusNDTV.com - May 27, 2010 At a time when the Cabinet has referred the issue of caste census to a Group of Ministers (GoM), Congress MP Ajay Maken has now written to about 70-odd ... GoM is a delaying tactic, says SharadHindustan Times - May 27, 2010 A day after the Cabinet decided to refer the caste census issue to a Group of Ministers (GoM), there were strong reactions on the issue. ... Census question over caste identity divides IndiaThe Associated Press - - May 27, 2010 NEW DELHI — Bollywood's biggest star has an answer ready if census workers ask about his caste: "Indian." "My father never believed in caste, and neither do ... | Timeline of articles Number of sources covering this story
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Coordination panel for smooth rollout of unique numbers
Panel to assess costs of a unique identity
UID key instrument to expand financial inclusion: UPA report
"The government has decided to collaborate with the UIDAI to enhance efficiency in delivery of governmental benefits and services through accurate identification of beneficiaries," Dikshit told reporters. more by Sheila Dikshit - May 31, 2010 - Sify (5 occurrences) |
Delhi to sign pact for early unique identification numbers
Finance ministry balks at Rs 45000 cr UID price tag
Questionable link
Delhi fast-tracks process for unique IDs to citizens
Delhi Govt and UIDAI to ink pact
Aadhar is stronger than US counterpart
UK scraps National ID project; Will India's UID face the same fate?
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Online food guides at timescity.comDemographics of IndiaFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The demographics of India are remarkably diverse. India is the second-largest populated country in the world with over 1.18 billion people (estimate for April, 2010) and consists of more than one-sixth of the world's population. It contributes 17.31% of the world's population and projected that India will be the largest populated country by 2025 surpassing China, and by 2050 it will have over 1.6 billion people.[1][2] India has more than two thousand ethnic groups, and every major religion is represented, as are four major families of languages (Indo-European, Dravidian, Austro-Asiatic and Tibeto-Burman languages) as well as a language isolate (the Nihali language[3] spoken in parts of Maharashtra). Further complexity is lent by the great variation that occurs across this population on social parameters such as income and education. Only the continent of Africa exceeds the linguistic, genetic and cultural diversity of the nation of India.[4]
[edit] Salient featuresIndia occupies 2.4% of the world's land area and supports over 17.5% of the world's population. India has more arable land area than any country except the United States,[5] and more water area than any country except Canada and the United States. Indian life revolves mostly around agriculture and allied activities in small villages, where the overwhelming majority of Indians live. As per the 2001 census, 72.2% of the population[6] lives in about 638,000 villages[7] and the remaining 27.8%[8] lives in more than 5,100 towns and over 380 urban agglomerations.[9] [edit] Religious demographicsMain article: Religion in India Table 1: 2001 Religious Data Composotion[10]
N.B. "Total" excludes Mao-Maram, Paomata and Purul subdivisions of Senapati District of Manipur state. India contains the majority of the world's Zoroastrians, Sikhs, Hindus, Jains and Bahá'í. India is also home to the third-largest Muslim population in the world after Indonesia and Pakistan. Religious majorities vary greatly by state. Jammu and Kashmir and Lakshadweep are Muslim majority states; Nagaland, Mizoram and Meghalaya are Christian majority; Punjab is mostly Sikh; It is to be noted that while participants in the Indian census may choose to not declare their religion, there is no mechanism for a person to indicate that he/she does not adhere to any religion. Due to this limitation in the Indian census process, the data for persons not affiliated with any religion may not be accurate. The table below summarizes the findings of the 2001 census with regards to religion in India:
N.B. Table excludes Mao-Maram, Paomata and Purul subdivisions of Senapati District of Manipur state. * The data is "unadjusted" (without excluding Assam and Jammu and Kashmir); 1981 census was not conducted in Assam and 1991 census was not conducted in Jammu and Kashmir. † No. of females/1000 males. [edit] Linguistic demographicsMain article: List of languages by number of native speakers in India 43% of the Hindus speak Hindi while the rest speak Bangla, Telugu, Marathi, Tamil, Gujarati, Kannada, Malayalam, Assamese and other languages. Almost 45% of the Muslims speak Urdu while the rest speak Bangla, Hindi, Kashmiri, Malayalam, Telugu, Tamil, Gujarati, Assamese and other languages. About one-third of the Christians speak Malayalam, one-sixth speak Tamil while the rest speak a variety of languages. In total, there are 1,652 languages and dialects spoken in India.[19] Languages of India by number of native speakers as per the 2001 census[20]
N.B. The percentage of speakers of each language for 2001 has been worked out on the total population of India (excluding Mao-Maram, Paomata and Purul subdivisions of Senapati District of Manipur state due to cancellation of census results). * Excludes Mao-Maram, Paomata and Purul of Senapati District. [edit] CIA World Factbook demographic statisticsThe following demographic statistics are from the CIA World Factbook, unless otherwise indicated. Total Population1,166,079,217 (July 2009 est. CIA)[23] 1,028.7 million (2001 Census final figures, March 1 enumeration and estimated 124,000 in areas of Manipur that could not be covered in the enumeration) Rural Population72.2%, male: 381,668,992, female: 360,948,755 (2001 Census) Urban Population
Median age: 1.548% (2009 est.) Birth rate21.76 births/1,000 population (2009 est.) Death rate6.4 deaths/1,000 population (2009 est.) Literacy rate79.9% Percent of the population under the poverty line22% (2006 est.) Unemployment Rate7.8% Net migration rate− -0.05 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) Sex ratio
total: 30.15 deaths/1,000 live births (2009 est.) male: 34.61 deaths/1,000 live births female: 25.17 deaths/1,000 live births Life expectancy at birth 2.72 children born/woman (2009 est.) The TFR (Total number of children born per women) according to Religion in 2001 was : Hindus — 2.0 Muslims — 2.4 Sikhs — 1.6 Christians — 2.1 Buddhists — 2.1 Jains — 1.4 Animists and Others — 2.99 Tribals — 3.16 Scheduled Castes — 2.89[citation needed] Nationality
Hindu 80.5% Muslim 13.4% Christian 2.3% Sikh 1.8% Buddhists 0.8% Jains 0.4% others 0.7% unspecified 0.1% (2001 Census) [24][25] [26].[27] Scheduled Castes and TribesScheduled Castes: 16.2% (2001 Census) Scheduled Tribes: 8.2% (2001 Census) Languages: See Languages of India and List of Indian languages by total speakers. There are 216 languages with more than 10,000 native speakers in India. The largest of these is Hindi with some 337 million (the second largest being Bangla with some 207 million). 22 languages are recognized as official languages. In India, there are 1,652 languages and dialects in total.[19][28] [edit] 2020 EstimateTable 2: Population Projections (in millions)
Source: Based on P.N. Mari Bhat, "Indian Demographic Scenario 2025", Institute of Economic Growth, New Delhi, Discussion Paper No. 27/2001. [edit] Ethnic groups
The national Census of India does not recognize racial or ethnic groups within India,[29] but recognizes many of the tribal groups as Scheduled Castes and Tribes (see list of Scheduled Tribes in India). It should be noted that Indo-Aryan, Dravidian, Tibeto-Burman and Austro-Asiatic are mainly linguistic terms and denote speakers of these linguistic groups. For a list of ethnic groups in the Republic of India (as well as neighboring countries) see ethnic groups of the Indian subcontinent or the tree diagram above. [edit] Genetics[edit] Y-chromosome DNAY-Chromosome DNA Y-DNA represents the male lineage, The Indian Y-chromosome pool may be summarized as follows where haplogroups R1a, H, R2, L & NOP comprise generally more than 80% of the total chromosomes.[32] [edit] Mitochondrial DNAMitochondrial DNA mtDNA represents the female lineage. The Indian mitochondrial DNA, which is primarily made up of Haplogroup M[33]
[edit] See also
[edit] References
[edit] External links
CensusFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to:navigation, search A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population.[1][2] The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses include agriculture, business, and traffic. In the latter cases the elements of the 'population' are farms/businesses/etc rather than people. The United Nations defines the essential features of population and housing censuses as "individual enumeration, universality within a defined territory, simultaneity and defined periodicity", and recommends that population censuses are taken at least every 10 years.[3] The term itself comes from Latin: during the Roman Republic the census was a list that kept track of all adult males fit for military service. The census can be contrasted with sampling in which information is obtained only from a subset of a population, sometimes as an Intercensal estimate. Census data is commonly used for research, business marketing, and planning as well as a base for sampling surveys. In some countries, census data is used to apportion electoral representation (sometimes controversially - e.g. see Utah v. Evans).
[edit] Census and privacyWhile the census provides a useful way of obtaining statistical information about a population, such information can sometimes lead to abuses, political or otherwise, made possible by the linking of individuals' identities to anonymous census data.[4] This consideration is particularly important when individuals' census responses are made available in microdata form, but even aggregate-level data can result in privacy breaches when dealing with small areas and/or rare subpopulations. For instance, when reporting data from a large city, it might be appropriate to give the average income for black males aged between 50 and 60. However, doing this for a town that only has two black males in this age group would be a breach of privacy because either of those persons, knowing his own income and the reported average, could determine the other man's income. Typically, census data is processed to obscure individual information. Some agencies do this by intentionally introducing small statistical errors to prevent the identification of individuals in marginal populations;[5] others swap variables for similar respondents. Whatever measures have been taken to reduce the privacy risk in census data, new technology in the form of better electronic analysis of data poses increasing challenges to the protection of sensitive individual information. [edit] Ancient and medieval censuses[edit] EgyptCensuses in Egypt are said to have been taken during the early Pharaonic period in 3340 BC and in 3050 BC. [edit] ChinaThe world's oldest extant census data comes from China sometime before the Xia Dynasty, over 4,000 years ago, counting some 13 million people.[6][7] The second oldest extant data in the world comes from the Han Dynasty, in what is perhaps China's most well-known ancient census.[8][9] Taken in the fall of 2 AD, it is considered by scholars to be quite accurate.[10] By that time, there were 57.67 million people registered in 12.36 million households living in China.[11][12][13] The third oldest data in the world is also from the Han Dynasty, dating back to 144 AD, when only 49.73 million people living in 9.94 million households were counted. Mass migrations into what is today southern China are believed to be behind this massive demographic decline. Numerous other census data survives from Imperial China. [edit] RomeThe word 'census' originates in ancient Rome from the Latin word 'censere' (meaning 'estimate'). The census played a crucial role in the administration of the Roman Empire, as it was used to determine taxes (see Censor (ancient Rome)). With few interruptions, it was usually carried out every five years[14]. It provided a register of citizens and their property from which their duties and privileges could be listed. [edit] Umayyad CaliphateIn the Middle Ages, the Caliphate began conducting regular censuses soon after its formation, beginning with the one ordered by the second Rashidun caliph, Umar.[15] [edit] Medieval EuropeThe most famous census in medieval Europe is the Domesday Book, undertaken in 1086 by William I of England so that he could properly tax the land he had recently conquered. In 1183, a census was taken of the crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem, to ascertain the number of men and amount of money that could possibly be raised against an invasion by Saladin, sultan of Egypt and Syria. [edit] Inca EmpireIn the 15th century, the Inca Empire had a unique way to record census information. The Incas did not have any written language but recorded information collected during censuses and other numeric information as well as non-numeric data on quipus, strings from llama or alpaca hair or cotton cords with numeric and other values encoded by knots in a base-10 positional system. [edit] Modern censuses[edit] AfghanistanA partial and incomplete population census was taken in Afghanistan in 1980. A census was planned for 2007.[16] [edit] AlbaniaThe latest population census was conducted in Albania in April 2001.[17][18] Prior to that, a census was conducted in 1989 at the end of the communist regime. [edit] AlgeriaPopulation and housing censuses have been carried out in Algeria in 1967, 1977, 1987, 1998, and 2008. The next census is in 2016. [edit] Antigua and BarbudaA Population & Housing Census was carried out in 2001. [edit] ArgentinaNational population census are carried out in Argentina roughly every ten years, the last one being in 2001. More about census, see: National Institute of Statistics and Census of Argentina. [edit] AustriaThe Austrian census is run by the Statistik Austria. It is carried out every ten years, the last one being in 2001. [edit] AustraliaMain article: Census in Australia The Australian census is operated by the Australian Bureau of Statistics. It is currently conducted every five years, the last occurrence being on August 8, 2006. Past Australian censuses were conducted in 1911, 1921, 1933, 1947, 1954, and 1961 - 2006 every five years. In 2006, for the first time, Australians were able to complete their census online. [edit] AzerbaijanPopulation censuses have been taken in Azerbaijan under Russian/Soviet rule in 1897, 1926, 1937, 1939, 1959, 1970, 1979, and 1989. Beginning in 1991, two more census have been carried out in Azerbaijan: one in 1999 and one in 2009.[19] [edit] BangladeshPopulation censuses were conducted by the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) in 1974, 1981, 1991 and 2001. [edit] BarbadosCensuses on population size in Barbados are conducted by the Barbados Statistical Service (BSS), the last major census conducted was 2000, and one is scheduled for 2010. [edit] BeninPopulation censuses have been taken in Benin in 1978, 1992 and 2002. [edit] BoliviaPopulation and housing censuses have been carried out in Bolivia in 1992 and 2001. [edit] Bosnia-HerzegovinaA census was taken 1991 and a future will take 2011 [edit] BrazilThe Brazilian census is carried out by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics every 10 years. The last one was in 2000. Earlier censuses were taken in 1872 (the first), 1900, 1920, 1941, 1950, 1960, 1970, 1980 and 1991. Brazil's Demographic Census is one of the most hierarchical collection of census data in the world. Its hierarchies include: Brazil (Country), Major Regions, States, Macro-regions, micro-regions, municipalities, districts, sub-districts, Neighborhoods and census tracts. Depending on the administrative hierarchy, some types of data are not published to respect confidentiality. For example: 1. The lower area of data collection is the census tract, with approximately 300 households, and information is collected on age, condition of the home, gender, income, among others. 2. Districts: information on race, color, religion, disability, etc. 3. Municipalities (cities): in addition to the information already described, there is information of GDP, industrial production, agricultural production, migration between cities to study or work, to live migration, inflation, employment rates, number of industries, the quantity of trade, etc. Information is collected with handheld computers equipped with GPS receivers and digitized maps. For more information, see the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE). [edit] BulgariaBulgarian governors organized a national census soon after the liberation of the Bulgarian lands. In 1881 a census took place in the Principality, while in 1884 a census was organized in Eastern Rumelia. The first census covering the unified state took place in 1888. Since these first accounts, Bulgarian authorities had organized several population censuses: 1892, 1900, 1905, 1910, 1920, 1926, 1934, 1946, 1956, 1965, 1975, 1985, 1992 and 2001. The data provided in the Bulgarian censuses from 1888 until WW-II is regarded as highly reliable according to the standards of the time. The Bulgarian leading statisticians of the period were generally educated in Western universities and participated vividly in the international cooperation, therefore insisted and succeeded in introducing the best practices of the time. The quality of the data provided of later censuses is a matter of debate. [edit] CanadaSee also: Canada 2001 Census and Canada 2006 Census The Canadian census is run by Statistics Canada. The 1666 census of New France was conducted by French intendant Jean Talon, when he took a census to ascertain the number of people living in New France. The method and data was later used when Canada was founded 280 years later. The individual provinces (sometimes in conjunction with each other) conducted censuses in the 19th century and before. In 1871, Canada's first formal census was conducted, which counted the population of Nova Scotia, Ontario, New Brunswick, and Quebec. Censuses in Canada are conducted in five-year intervals. The last two censuses were conducted in 2001 and 2006. Censuses taken in mid-decade (1976, 1986, 1996, etc.) are referred to as quinquennial censuses. Others are referred to as decennial censuses. The first quinquennial census was conducted in 1956. For the 2006 Census of Canada, respondents were able, for the first time, to choose to complete their census questionnaire online. Other options for answering the questionnaire include postal mail (using a pre-paid envelope) and telephone (using an 800 number). [edit] AlbertaIn the Province of Alberta, Section 57 of its Municipal Government Act (MGA)[20] enables municipalities to perform their own censuses on any given year. An official municipal census must be conducted no earlier than April 1 and no later than June 30 of the same year, according to the MGA's Determination of Population Regulation.[21] If municipalities choose to make their census count official, the new population must be submitted to the Ministry of Municipal Affairs[22] prior to September 1 of the year the census was performed. The latest census counts for Alberta's municipalities are released in the Ministry's annual Official Population List[23] publication. The Alberta Population website builds upon the data provided by the Province and Statistics Canada. It compares municipal and federal census results by municipality, analyses historic population trends by municipality, and provides detailed annual population summaries.[24] [edit] ChileNational population censuses are carried out in Chile every ten years by the INE (Instituto Nacional de Estadísticas, or National Statistics Institute), the last one being in 2002. [edit] ChinaPopulation censuses have been taken in the Republic of China and the People's Republic of China in 1913, 1944, 1953, 1964, 1982, 1990 and 2000.[25] These were the world's biggest censuses as they attempted to count every man, woman and child in the most populous nation in the world. Some 6 million enumerators were engaged in the 2000 census. The next national population census will start on November 1, 2010.[26] Between National Population Censuses, 1% National Population Sample Surveys were taken in 1987, 1995, 2005 and 0.1% National Population Sample Surveys have been taken annually since 2000.[27] National agricultural, economic, and industrial censuses are also taken on a regular basis. The first economic census was taken in 2004 and the second 2008.[28] [edit] Costa RicaCosta Rica carried out its 9th population census in 2000. INEC, National Institute of Statistics and Census is in charge of conduct these censuses. Past Costa Rican censuses were conducted in 1864, 1883, 1892, 1927, 1950, 1963, 1973 and 1984. [edit] Czech RepublicCensus in the Czech Republic is carried out every 10 years by the Czech Statistical Office. The last census was taken in 2001. Earlier censuses were taken in 1869, 1880, 1890, 1900, 1910, 1921, 1930, 1950, 1961, 1970, 1980 and 1991. [edit] DenmarkMain article: Census in Denmark The first Danish census was in 1700-1701, and contained statistical information about adult men. Only about half of it still exists. A census of school children was taken during the 1730s. Following these early undertakings, the first census to attempt completely covering all citizens (including women and children who had previously been listed only as numbers) of Denmark-Norway was taken in 1769.[29] At that point there were 797 584 citizens in the kingdom. Georg Christian Oeder took a statistical census in 1771 which covered Copenhagen, Sjælland, Møn, and Bornholm. After that, censuses followed somewhat regularly in 1787, 1801, and 1834, and between 1840 and 1860, the censuses were taken every five years, and then every ten years until 1890. Special censuses for Copenhagen were taken in 1885 and 1895. In the 20th century, censuses were taken every five years from 1901 to 1921, and then every ten years from 1930. The last traditional census was taken in 1970. A limited population census based on registers was taken in 1976. From 1981 and each year onwards information that corresponds to a population and housing census is retrieved from registers. Denmark was the first country in the world to conduct these censuses from administrative registers. The most important registers are the Population Register (Det Centrale Personregister), the Building and Dwelling Register and the Enterprise Register. The central statistical office, Statistics Denmark is responsible for compiling these data. This information is available online in the Statbank Denmark[30]. It is possible to search a portion of the Danish censuses online at the Dansk Demografisk Database[31], and also view scanned versions at Arkivalier Online[32]. [edit] EgyptMain article: Census in Egypt The Statistical Department of the Ministry of Finance conducted the first census in 1882, which considered as a preparatory step; the first true population census was conducted in 1897. Thereafter, censuses were conducted at ten-year intervals in 1907, 1917, 1927 and so on. [edit] EstoniaPopulation censuses have been taken in Estonia in 1881, 1897, 1922, 1934, 1959, 1970, 1979, 1989 and 2000.[33] The responsible institution is the Statistics Estonia.[34] [edit] EthiopiaThree censuses have been taken in Ethiopia: 1984, 1994 and in 2007. The responsible institution is the Central Statistical Agency. Most of the census in 2007 was taken in August, while the Somali Region and the Afar Region were not covered. The northern Afar region is a remote, hot and arid area. The eastern Somali region (Ogaden) hosts a large nomadic Somali population and is a conflict area where Ethiopian regular forces are fighting against Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF). [edit] FinlandThe first population census was taken in 1749 when Finland was a part of Sweden. The most recent census took place on December 31, 2000. [edit] FranceThe census in France is carried out by INSEE. Since 2004, a partial census is carried out every year, and the results published as averages over 5 years. [edit] GermanyMain article: Census in Germany The first systematic population on the European continent was taken in 1719 in Prussia (roughly corresponding to today's northern Germany and western Poland). The first large-scale census in the German Empire took place in 1895. Attempts at introducing a census in West Germany sparked strong popular resentment in the 1980s since many quite personal questions were asked. Some campaigned for a boycott. In the end the Constitutional Court stopped the census in 1980 and 1983. The last census was in 1987. Germany has since used population samples in combination with statistical methods, in place of a full census. [edit] GreeceCensus takes place every 10 years and is carried out by the National Statistical Service of Greece.[35] Last census was in 2001. [edit] GuatemalaModern population censuses have been taken in Guatemala in 1930, 1950, 1964, 1973, 1981, 1994 and in 2002. Controversial cenuses include those in 1950 and 1964 (misclassification of the Maya population) and 1994 (generally questioned). About 14,000,000 people live in Guatemala as of July 2009. Relaciones Geográficas of Mexico and Guatemala, 1577-1585. On May 25, 1577, King Philip II of Spain ordered by royal cédula the preparation of a general description of Spain's holdings in the Indies. Instructions and a questionnaire, issued in 1577 by the Office of the Cronista Mayor-Cosmógrafo, were distributed to local officials in the Viceroyalties of New Spain and Peru to direct the gathering of information. The questionnaire, composed of fifty items, was designed to elicit basic information about the nature of the land and the life of its peoples. The replies, known as "relaciones geográficas," were written between 1579 and 1585 and were returned to the Cronista Mayor-Cosmógrafo in Spain by the Council of the Indies. [edit] Hong KongMain article: Census in Hong Kong Census takes place every 10 years and by-census between two censuses by the Census and Statistics Department of Hong Kong. The last census was conducted in 2001 and the last by-census was taken in 2006. [edit] HungaryOfficial decennial censuses have been taken in Hungary since 1870; the latest one – in line with the recommendations of the United Nations and the Statistical Office of the European Union – was carried out in 2001. Starting from 1880 the Hungarian census system was based on native language (the language spoken at home in the early life of the person and at the time of the survey), vulgar language (the most frequently used language in the family), and other spoken languages. [edit] IcelandThe first Icelandic census took place in 1703, following upon the first Danish census of 1700–1701. Further censuses were carried out in 1801, 1845 and 1865. The 1703 exercise was the first ever census to cover all inhabitants of an entire country, mentioning the name, age and social position of each individual. All of the information still exists, although some of the original documents have been lost. The setting up, in 1952, of the National Registry (Þjóðskrá) eliminated the need for censuses. All those born in Iceland, and all new residents, are automatically registered. Individuals are identified in the registry by means of a national identification number (the so-called kennitala), a number composed of the date of birth in the format ddmmyy and four additional digits, the third of which is a control digit, and the last of which indicates the century in which the person was born (9 for the 1900s and 0 for the 2000s). The National Registry doubles as an electoral register. Likewise, all bank accounts are linked to the national identification of the owner (companies and institutions all have their own identification numbers). [edit] IndiaMain article: Demographics of India The decennial census of India is the primary source of information about the demographic characteristics of the population of India. The 2011 census will be the largest census in the history of mankind.[36] The first census in India in modern times was conducted in 1889. Since then, a population census has been carried out every 10 years. The latest census commenced on 1 April, 2010. It will create a National Population Register with photographs and fingerprints of every resident. All usual residents of India will also be provided with their Unique ID numbers and National Identity Cards. The census is carried out by the office of the Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India, Delhi, an office in the Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India, under the 1948 Census of India Act. The act gives Central Government many powers like to notify a date for Census, power to ask for the services of any citizen for census work. The law makes it compulsory for every citizen to answer the census questions truthfully. The Act provides penalties for giving false answers or not giving answers at all to the census questionnaire. One of the most important provisions of law is the guarantee for the maintenance of secrecy of the information collected at the census of each individual. The census records are not open to inspection and also not admissible in evidence. The census is conducted in two phases: first, house listing and house numbering phase and second, the actual population enumeration phase. The census is carried out by the canvassing method. In this method, each and every household is visited and the information is collected by specially trained enumerator. They collect data related to households e.g. number of members, water & electricity supply, ownership of land, vehicles, computers and other assets and services. In the second phase, total population is counted and statistics related to individuals are collected.[36] [edit] IndonesiaThe first population census was done during the colonial era, 1930. Before that, a non-overall census was already conducted in 1920. After that census was done irregularly. The first census after independence was 1961, followed by 1971. Since 1980 it is conducted regularly every 10 years. In between, there is also economical census (every 10 years, five years after population census) and agricultural census (three years after population census). [edit] IranMain article: Demographics of Iran The Statistical Center of Iran carries out nationwide population and housing censuses every 10 years, the last of which occurred in 2006 (1385 AP). In the Islamic Republic of Iran, based on Article 4 of the Act of the Statistical Center of Iran (SCI), the census shall be implemented once every 10 years according to the Presidential decree. So far there have been 6 incidences of population census in Iran in the years 1956, 1966, 1976, 1986, 1996, and 2006; all taken in accordance with scientific methods. [edit] IrelandThe census in Ireland is carried out by the Central Statistics Office.[37] The census is carried out every five years, with more detailed information collected in years ending in 1 and less in the years ending in 6. The 1976 census was cancelled as a cost-saving measure, but a supplementary census was held in 1979 after it became apparent that the 1970s had seen major demographic changes.[38] The census scheduled for 2001 was postponed until 2002 due to the outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease.[39] The most recent census took place on 23 April 2006.[40] According to the 2006 form, "any person who fails or refuses to provide information or who knowingly provides false information may be subject to a fine of up to €25,000," under the Central Statistics Act 1993. On the CSO website, instructions for non-English speaking residents of Ireland were available. They were mock copies of the census forms, with all headings/questions etc. being translated into a particular language. These were not to be filled out, but were only a guide on how to fill out the English or Irish form. This census also asked two new questions relating to ownership of PCs and Internet connection. Data from the 1911 Census for the island of Ireland was made publicly available in 1961,[41] and are being published online.[42] Subsequent census records will be made publicly available 100 years after collection.[41] Questions relating to the ability to speak the Irish Language are included in the census. The figures obtained have been criticised as inflated by cognitive biases, such as response bias or wishful thinking. The 2006 census included an additional question on frequency of speaking Irish.
[edit] IsraelThe first census in the state of Israel was held in November 1948, six months after its creation, to establish the population registry.[44] Subsequent censuses were conducted by the Israel Central Bureau of Statistics (ICBS) in 1961, 1972, 1983 and 1995.[44] In these, 20% of households completed a detailed survey and the remainder a shorter questionaire.[44] There is no legal requirement to hold a census within a given interval; in practice, the ICBS requests and the government decides.[44] The next Census to be held was postponed from 2006 to late 2008/early 2009.[44] Only the detailed survey of 20% will be carried out, as a cost-saving measure.[44] [edit] ItalyThe census in Italy is carried out by ISTAT every 10 years. The last four were in 1971, 1981, 1991, 2001. [edit] JapanMain article: Demographics of Japan Japan collects census information every five years. The figures show the English translation of the 2005 census form. The form solicits information on name, sex, relationship to head of household, year and month of birth, marital status, nationality, number of members of household, type and nature of dwelling, floor area of dwelling, number of hours worked during the week prior to October 1, employment status, name of employer and type of business, and kind of work. [edit] JordanThe first population census after the independence in 1946 was taken in 1952. It did only count the number of people in the households and could therefore be considered only to be a housing census. The first real complete census was taken in 1961. The following censuses have been taken in 1979, 1994 and 2004. The distribution of Palestinians and Jordanians within the population has been a politically sensitive issue since the Six-Day war in 1967. [edit] KenyaCensus in Kenya was first held in 1948, when Kenya was still a Colony administrated by the British. Since 1969 census has been taken every ten years. The last census to date was in 2009.[45] [edit] KosovoKosovo, administrated by the UN since 1999, declared independence in 2008. Kosovo government is planning a general population census for 2011.[46] The first census was conducted in the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes in 1921. [edit] LatviaThe most recent census in Latvia was in 2000. Before that, it was about 6 censuses, most part of these previous censuses was undertaken during Soviet (USSR) control. The census in Latvia is carried out by Centrālā Statistikas Pārvalde (Central Statistical Bureau). [edit] LebanonNo census has been conducted in Lebanon since 1932.[47] It indicated a population of 861,399 Lebanese.[48] Various estimates of the population have been taken since; in 1956 it was estimated a population of 1,411,416, with 54% Christian and 44% Muslim. Conducting a census since then has been complicated by various conflicts in the 1970s and 1980s.[49] [edit] MalaysiaThe census in Malaysia is carried out every 10 years, like many nations, since 1960 (with the exception of the fourth census, which was carried out in 1991). The next census will be carried out from July 6 to August 22, 2010, the most recent was in 2000. [edit] MacedoniaThe foundation of the Republic of Macedonia followed the break up of the former Yugoslav Republic in 1991. The first population and housing census was taken in the summer 1994. The second census was taken in the autumn 2002. Both censuses were observed by international experts due to the sensitive issue regarding the ethnic distribution (Macedonian vs Albanian population). [edit] MauritiusPopulation and housing censuses for Mauritius was collected in 1972, 1983, and 2000; although respondents were asked to identify their race/ethnic origin in the 1972 census, this question was dropped from the following censuses because "the government felt that it was a divisive question".[50] The Statistics Act of 2000 directed that all official censuses be conducted by the Central Statistics Office of Mauritius, as well as serve as the central depository for this information.[51] [edit] MexicoPopulation censuses are taken every 10th year in Mexico. The latest have been in 1960, 1970, 1980, 1990 and 2000 (the 12th census). After 1990 the Mexican census has been taken every 5 years. [edit] MozambiqueThe first census was taken in 1980. The second in 1997. The third was taken 1–14 August 2007. [edit] NetherlandsThe first census in the Netherlands was conducted in 1795, and the last in 1971. A law was produced on April 22, 1879, ordering a census to be conducted every ten years. The census that was planned for 1981 was postponed and later cancelled. A call for privacy was responsible for the cancellation of any further census since 1991. Censuses are being conducted by the Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek since 1899. The censuses today are mostly (population, fiscal) register based, combined with surveying. [edit] New ZealandThe census in New Zealand is carried out by Statistics New Zealand (Tatauranga Aotearoa), every five years. The last was on 7 March 2006. For the 2006 Census of New Zealand, respondents could choose to complete their census questionnaire online. See New Zealand Census of Population and Dwellings. [edit] NepalPopulation censuses are taken every 10th year in Nepal. The latest were in 1981, 1991 and 2001 (the 6th census.) [edit] NigeriaPopulation censuses have been taken in Nigeria during colonial time in 1866, 1871, 1896, 1901, 1911, 1921 and 1952. The censuses covered only the southern part of the country except for the 1952 census which was country wide, and the censuses before 1921 were based on administrative estimates rather than on an actual enumeration. Censuses during the independence were taken 1963, 1973, 1991 and 2006. The results from 1973 and 2006 were highly disputed. The preliminary results for 2006 indicates a population of 140,000,000. 700,000 enumerators were engaged in this operation. [edit] NorwayThe two first male censuses was conducted during the 1660s and 1701. Later statistical censuses were held in 1769, 1815, 1835, 1845, and 1855. Norway's first nominative, complete census was taken in 1801, when Norway still was ruled by the Oldenburg dynasty of Denmark-Norway. The scope of the census followed the de jure principle, so military persons should be included as well as foreigners if they were residents. The 1865, 1875 and 1900 censuses are digitized, and are made searchable on the internet. The census records are made public available when 100 years have passed. Since 1900, a census has been conducted every ten years. (However, the 1940 census was postponed to 1946.) Since 2001 the population census has been combined with the housing statistics. [edit] OmanCensuses have been taken in the Sultanate of Oman in 1993 and 2003. [edit] PakistanThe first Pakistan Census after the proclamation of independence of Pakistan was conducted in 1951. It was decreed that censuses have to be carried out once in 10 years. The second census was conducted in 1961. However the third one was conducted in 1972 because of war with India. The fourth census was held in 1981.The fifth census was conducted delayed in March 1998. The sixth census of Pakistan is planned in October 2008.[52] [edit] PeruMain article: Peru Census The first census in Peru was carried out in 1836. The eleventh and latest one was the 2007 Census and was carried out by Instituto Nacional de Estadística e Informática in August 2007. [edit] PhilippinesMain article: Census in the Philippines The census of the Philippines is enumerated every 5 years (beginning on 1960, except in 2005 where it was moved to 2007 due to budgetary constraints) and the results are used to allocate Congressional seats (congressional apportionment) and government program funding. The census is performed by the National Statistics Office. The first official census in the Philippines was carried out by the Spanish government pursuant to a royal decree calling for the counting of persons living as of the midnight of December 31, 1877. The first door-to-door census was conducted in 1903 to fulfill Public Act 467 which was approved by the U.S. Congress in July 1902. The last national census was held in 2007 and the next census is scheduled for 2010. For years between the censuses, the NSO issues estimates made using surveys and statistical models. [edit] PolandMain article: Census in Poland The census in Poland is carried out by GUS every circa 10 years. The last one occurred in 2002 between May 21 and June 8. During the national census in 2002 the following censuses were conducted at the same time: National Population and Housing Census and National Agricultural Census. [edit] PortugalThe first census in Portugal was carried out in 1864. The census in Portugal is carried out by Instituto Nacional de Estatística (INE) every 10 years. The last one occurred in 2001. [edit] RomaniaMain article: Demographic history of Romania The first census in Romania was carried out in 1859. It is now carried out every ten years by the Institutul Naţional de Statistică (INSSE). The last census was in 2002; the next one will be in 2011.[53] [edit] Russia/USSRIn Russia, the first census of the tax-payers was made in 1722-23 by the order of Peter the Great (only men were counted), and was ordered to be repeated every 20 years. The only complete Russian Empire Census was carried out in 1897. All-Union Population Censuses were carried out in the USSR (which included RSFSR and the other republics) in 1920 (urban only), 1926, 1937, 1939, 1959, 1970, 1979, and 1989. The first post-Soviet Russian Census was carried out in 2002. The next census is tentatively planned for 2010. Currently, the census is the responsibility of the Federal State Statistics Service. [edit] Saudi ArabiaPopulation censuses have been taken in Saudi Arabia in 1962/63 (incomplete), 1974 (complete but not reliable), 1992 and 2004. An agriculture census was taken in 1999. [edit] SerbiaThe census takes place every 10 years. The last census was in 2002 (although having been planned for 2001), the previous one was in 1991 and the next is planned for 2011. [edit] SloveniaThe first census of modern Slovenia was carried in 1991, after independence had been declared. The Statistical Office of the Republic of Slovenia (Statistični urad Republike Slovenije) conducted the second census in 2002. Further censuses are planned for every 10 years. [edit] South AfricaThe first census of South Africa was taken in 1911. Several enumerations have occurred since then,[54] with the most recent two being carried out by Statistics South Africa in 1996 and 2001. The next South African census is planned for 2011. [edit] SpainThe census in Spain is carried out by INE every 10 years. Although there has been an old tradition and like for making census in Spain, the oldest ones dating back to the 12th century (by Alfonso VII of the Kingdom of Castile), the first modern census was carried out in 1768 by Conde de Aranda, under the reign of Carlos III. The last four were in 1971, 1981, 1991, and 2001. [edit] Sri LankaThe census in Sri Lanka is carried out by the Department of Census and Statistics every 10 years, with the next one being planned for 2011.[55] The 2011 one being the first post-war census in three decades. The census will cover all Grama Niladhari (GN) divisions of the country. The last four were in 1963, 1971, 1981 and 2001 with a census estimate in 1989. The 2001 census was only carried out in 18 Districts due to the Sri Lankan Civil War. [edit] SudanPopulation censuses have been carried out in Sudan in 1955/56, 1973 (national), 1983 (national) and 1993 (only north). A census was conduced in April 2008. Some areas were difficult to measure (e.g. Darfur, Juba and Malakal) [edit] SwedenThe first population census in Sweden was carried out in 1749. The last population and housing census was carried out in 1990. It is planned to conduct population and housing censuses based on registers in the future. [edit] SwitzerlandMain article: Swiss census In Switzerland, the Federal Population Census (German: Eidgenössische Volkszählung, French: Recensement fédéral de la population, Italian: Censimento federale della popolazione, Romansh: Dumbraziun federala dal pievel) has been carried out every 10 years starting in 1850. The census was initiated by Federal Councillor Stefano Franscini, who evaluated the data of the first census all by himself after Parliament failed to provide the necessary funds.[56] The census is now being conducted by the Swiss Federal Statistical Office. Data being collected include population data (citizenship, place of residence, place of birth, position in household, number of children, religion, languages, education, profession, place of work, etc.), household data (number of individuals living in the household, etc.), accommodation data (surface area, amount of rent paid, etc.) and building data (geocoordinates, time of construction, number of floors, etc.). Participation is compulsory and reached 99.87% of the population in 2000.[57] Starting in 2010, the census will cease to be conducted through written questionnaires distributed nationwide. Instead, data in existing population registers will be used. That data will be supplemented with a biannual questionnaire sample of 200,000 people as well as regular microcensuses. [edit] SyriaThe first population census in Syria was taken by the French Mandatory Regime in 1921-22. This is however not considered reliable. Censuses during independence have been taken 1947, 1960 (the first comprehensive demographic investigation), 1970, 1976 (a sample census), 1981, 1994 and 2004. [edit] TaiwanThe first census in Taiwan was conducted in 1905, while Taiwan was under Japanese rule.[58] [edit] TurkeyThe Turkish census is run by the Turkish Statistical Institute. The first census in Turkey was conducted in 1927. After 1935, it took place every 5 years until 1990. Now, the census takes place every 10 years. The last census was in 2000. It can be noted that the census enumeration takes place on one single day in Turkey (in other countries it takes 1–2 weeks). This required some 900,000 enumerators in 2000. The 15th census based on improved geographical information systems is planned for 2010. A census was taken in the Ottoman Empire 1831-38 by Sultan Mahmud II (1808–1839) as a part of the reform movement Tanzimat. Christian and Jewish men were counted but the female population was excluded. [edit] UgandaThe first censuses in Uganda were taken 1911, 1921 and 1931. It was done in a rather primitive way. Enumeration unit was 'huts' and not individuals. More scientific censuses were taken 1948 and 1959 where the enumeration unit was persons. The census was however divided into two separate enumerations, one for Africans, and one for the non-African population. The censuses during independence 1969, 1980, 1991 were taken jointly for all races. The censuses 1980 and 1991 included housing information and in addition a larger questionnaire for a sample of the population. However, the questionnaires for the 1980 were lost and only provisional figures are available from this census. The census in 2002 involved some 50,000 enumerators and supervisors. It covered several topics including: population and housing; agriculture; and Micro- and small Enterprises administered at individual/household level. The Preliminary Results were published two weeks after the enumeration. The Final Results were released in March 2005, while the analytical findings and the district level results were scheduled to be released in the second quarter of 2006.[59] [edit] UkraineThe first post-Soviet Ukrainian Census was carried out by State Statistics Committee of Ukraine in 2001, twelve years after the last All-Union census in 1989. [edit] United Kingdom
Main article: Census in the United Kingdom [edit] History of censuses in the UKIn the 7th century, Dál Riata (now western Scotland and northern County Antrim in Northern Ireland) was the first territory in what is now the UK to conduct a census, with what was called the "Tradition of the Men of Alba" (Senchus fer n-Alban). The Domesday Book of 1086 in England contained listings of households but its coverage was not complete and its intent was not the same as modern censuses. Following the influence of Malthus and concerns stemming from his An Essay On The Principle Of Population the UK census as we know it today started in 1801. This was championed by John Rickman who managed the first four up to 1831, partly to ascertain the number of men able to fight in the Napoleonic wars. Rickman's 12 reasons - set out in 1798 and repeated in Parliamentary debates - for conducting a UK census included the following justifications:
The census has been conducted every ten years since 1801 and most recently in 2001. The first four censuses (1801–1831) were mainly headcounts and contained little personal information. The 1841 Census, conducted by the General Register Office, was the first to record the names of everyone in a household or institution. However, their relationship to the head of the household was not noted, although sometimes this can be inferred from the occupation shown (e.g. servant). Those under the age of 15 had their proper ages listed, but for those who were older the ages were supposed to be rounded down to the nearest five years, although this rule was not strictly adhered to. Precise birthplaces were not given - at best the birthplace can be narrowed down to the county in which the person was living. From 1851 onwards the census shows the exact age and relationship to the head of household for each individual; the place of birth was also listed, but with varying degrees of precision. Sometimes those who were born abroad have the annotation B.S. or British Subject. The censuses are reasonably accurate. However, ages in particular are frequently shown incorrectly, though often the difference is only one year; in general the younger the individual the more accurate the age shown. Birthplaces often vary from one census to the next: a common error is to show the place where the census was taken as the birthplace, but most of the variations in birthplace can be accounted for by changes in geographical scale (for example, the nearest town being shown instead of the precise village, or a city being shown instead of the relevant suburb). The censuses are also remarkably complete - though inevitably a small percentage of the population was not recorded for one reason or another, and in some cases the records are missing or damaged (notably in 1861). Furthermore, all censuses of Ireland before 1901 have been lost or destroyed. Because of World War II, there was no census in 1941. However, following the passage into law (on 5 September 1939) of the National Registration Act a population count was carried out on 29 September 1939, which was, in effect, a census. [edit] Censuses in the modern dayThe census of England & Wales is undertaken for the government by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) for policy and planning purposes, and statistical information is made available in published reports and on the ONS's website. The General Register Office for Scotland (GROS) conducts its own census, while the census in Northern Ireland is carried out by the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA). Public access to the census returns is restricted under the terms of the 100-year rule; the most recent returns made available to researchers are those of the 1911 Census for England and Wales. The Scottish 1911 census will be available in 2011. The 2001 census was the first year in which the government asked about religion. Perhaps encouraged by a hoax chain letter that started in New Zealand, 390,000 people entered their religion as Jedi (See Jedi census phenomenon.) All of the British censuses from 1841-1911 have been transcribed and indexed and are available online, although GROS will not be releasing the Scottish 1911 returns until 2011; there is a joint project between the National Archives of Ireland and Library and Archives Canada to digitize the 1901 and 1911 censuses for the whole of Ireland, and it is possible this will be completed by the end of 2007.[citation needed] The next UK census is planned for 2011.[60] [edit] United StatesMain articles: United States Census and 2010 United States Census The United States Constitution mandates that a census be taken every ten years in order to apportion the number of members of the United States House of Representatives among the several states. Census statistics are also used in order to apportion federal funding for many social and economic programs. The first U.S. Census was conducted in 1790 by Federal marshals. Census takers went door to door and recorded the name of the head of the household and the number of people in each household. Slaves were enumerated, but only three out of five were counted for apportionment. American Indians, being neither taxed nor considered during apportionment, were not counted in the census. The first census counted 3.9 million people, less than half the population of New York City in 2000. During the 19th century and through the 1940 census, enumeration was accomplished through political districts. Each ward was responsible for producing a census. The usual method in urban areas was to assign the task to precinct leaders, who in turn would hire and send out "census takers", equipped with pencils, a sheaf of forms, and assigned areas to canvass door-by-door. These census takers would return their forms to the precinct office, which forwarded them to the ward office, where the pencilled-in data was transcribed in ink to bound volumes. This transcription process resulted in numerous misspellings if the worker's handwriting was hard to read, as well as omissions of people who were not home on the day the canvasser was sent out. In rural areas, canvassers often had to cover miles of uninhabited rural territory to find small towns and isolated farms, missing many or simply refusing to travel the full distances required for one day's pay. Canvasser supervisors often were unaware of data omissions due to the intentional isolation of many people in the countryside. From 1950 onward, census forms were mailed to every address on record with the United States Post Office, including the Armed Services Postal System, in an effort to enhance completeness of the data collected. Beginning in 1970, it was made illegal to fail to return a completed census form, which many were discovered to have done in the previous two decades' censuses. Canvassers came to be used only to verify a random sample of censuses received, and to attempt to complete records for people who still failed to return their census forms on time. Additionally in 1970, computer technology was introduced to consolidate the individual-completed census forms and canvassers' followup forms, in lieu of pen-and-ink transcriptions to official census ledgers. The 2000 census counted over 281 million people. In 1891, the building containing the accumulated census records for 1890 caught fire, destroying all but a few pages of that decade's census: canvassers records were routinely destroyed once transferred to the official ledgers. In 1902, Congress established the Census Bureau as a federal agency. In recent times, there have been two forms of questionnaire, long and short. The long form and its additional questions about matters such as daily commute times, housing unit factors, etc., has been replaced by the American Community Survey (ACS). Computer algorithms (based on complex sampling rules) determined which form was mailed to a given household, with one in six receiving the long form. This was supplemented by census workers going door to door to talk to those who failed to return the forms. In addition to a simple count of residents, the Census Bureau collects a variety of statistics, on topics ranging from ethnicity to the presence of indoor plumbing. While some critics claim that census questions are an invasion of privacy[61], the data collected by every question is either required to enforce some federal law (such as the Voting Rights Act) or to administer some federal program. The United States Congress gives approval to every question asked on the census. Despite a massive effort, the Census Bureau has never been able to count every individual, leading to controversy about whether to use statistical methods to supplement the numbers for some purposes, as well as arguments over how to improve the actual head count. The Supreme Court ruled that only an actual head count can be used to apportion Congressional seats; however, cities and minority representatives have complained that urban residents and minorities are undercounted. In several cases, the Census Bureau has recounted an area with disputed figures, provided the local government paid for the time and effort. The state of Utah protested the figures of the 2000 decennial census because it stood to gain a seat in the House of Representatives, but North Carolina gained it instead. Had the Census Bureau been mandated to count the numbers of Utahns living overseas, including many Mormon missionaries, Utah might have gained the seat.[62] To minimize the burden on individuals and to provide improved data, the Bureau has prepared several alternate methods for gathering economic, demographic, and social information, including the American Community Survey and record linking of depersonalized administrative records with other administrative records and Census Bureau surveys. By law (92 Stat. 915, Public Law 95-416, enacted on October 5, 1978), individual census records are sealed for 72 years.[63] This figure has remained unchanged since before the 1978 law, reflecting an era when life expectancy was under 60 years, and thus attempts to protect individuals' privacy by prohibiting the release of personal information during individuals' lifetimes. The individual census data most recently released to the public was the 1930 census, released in 2002. Aggregate census data are released when available. [edit] LocalIn addition to the decennial federal census, local censuses have also been conducted, for example, in Massachusetts, which conducted a statewide census every five years until 1985. Additionally, each community in Massachusetts takes a municipal census each year. Some states conducted limited censuses for various purposes, and these are typically located in state archives. [edit] See also
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Categories: Censuses | Genealogy | Population | Demography | Survey methodology | Sampling (statistics) |
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