Centre expands Census staffing rules to include private school teachers in Haryana

The Centre on Friday amended the Census Rules to permit the deployment of teachers from private aided and unaided educational institutions for enumeration duties, days after the Punjab and Haryana High Court stayed two Haryana government communications seeking details of private school teachers for Census 2027. The amendment, notified by the Union Ministry of Home Affairs, comes amid a legal dispute over whether the government can compel private unaided institutions to provide teaching staff for duties unrelated to education. While the revised rules expand the categories of personnel eligible for Census work, the High Court's interim order remains a significant development in the continuing legal challenge.

Justice Harpreet Singh Brar had passed the interim order on October 8 while hearing a petition filed by the Haryana Progressive Schools Conference (HPSC), an association representing private unaided schools in the state. The court stayed the operation of government communications dated September 1 and September 7, which sought details of teachers available for deployment during the upcoming Census. The relief was restricted to private unaided schools and did not extend to government educational institutions. The court has not delivered a final ruling on the legality of requisitioning private school teachers, and the matter is scheduled for further hearing on April 29, 2027.

𝗖𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘀 𝗖𝗲𝗻𝘀𝘂𝘀 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗳𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗿𝘂𝗹𝗲𝘀

The amendment to the Census Rules, 1990, explicitly permits the appointment of teachers employed by government institutions, local authorities, aided and unaided private educational bodies, societies and trusts for enumeration work. It also allows the deployment of clerical personnel from Central and state government offices, local authorities and establishments such as public sector undertakings, statutory bodies, banks, companies and other institutions. State governments and Union Territory administrations have additionally been empowered to appoint other individuals considered suitable for enumeration duties.

The changes significantly broaden the pool of personnel available for Census operations, which require large numbers of enumerators and supervisors to collect household and population information across the country. The timing of the notification is particularly significant because the legal challenge in Haryana centres on the absence of explicit statutory authority to requisition teachers from private unaided institutions.

However, the notification does not by itself constitute a judicial determination of the dispute. Questions concerning the application of the amended rules to the existing government communications, and their relationship with the High Court's interim directions, may require further consideration in the pending proceedings.

𝗦𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗼𝗹𝘀 𝗾𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗴𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗻𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁'𝘀 𝗮𝘂𝘁𝗵𝗼𝗿𝗶𝘁𝘆

In its petition, the Haryana Progressive Schools Conference argued that the state government lacked the legal authority to compel private unaided schools to make their teachers available for Census duties. The association contended that Section 4A of the Census Act, 1948, provides for the requisitioning of officers and staff belonging to local authorities but does not extend the same obligation to private unaided educational institutions.

The petitioner maintained that private schools operating without government financial assistance could not be brought within the scope of the provision through administrative communications. It argued that the state could not enlarge the categories of personnel covered by legislation merely by issuing instructions to educational institutions.

The association also raised constitutional objections, contending that compulsory deployment of teachers for non-teaching duties without adequate statutory backing interfered with the autonomy of private educational institutions. It invoked Articles 14 and 19(1)(g) of the Constitution, which protect equality before the law and the freedom to practise a profession or carry on an occupation, trade or business, respectively.

The petition further referred to the Supreme Court's 2002 judgment in T.M.A. Pai Foundation versus State of Karnataka, which addressed the rights of private educational institutions and the limits of government regulation. The association argued that the proposed deployment would interfere with the ability of private schools to manage their staff and discharge their educational responsibilities.

The petitioner was represented by advocates Rohit Sud, Gaurav Arora, Ishan and Sameesh Bassi. The Union of India and other authorities were named as respondents.

𝗛𝗖 𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗺 𝗿𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗲𝗳

During the proceedings, the High Court stayed the operation of the September 1 and September 7 communications insofar as they concerned private unaided schools. The order provided temporary protection to the institutions while leaving the underlying legal questions open for adjudication.

Assistant Advocate General Priyavrat Parashar accepted notice on behalf of the Haryana government and sought time to file a response. The court directed the state to submit its reply at least seven days before the next hearing and provide an advance copy to the petitioner.

The case has been listed for April 29, 2027. The interim order does not amount to a final declaration that private school teachers cannot be deployed for Census duties. Rather, it suspends the operation of the challenged communications against private unaided institutions pending further consideration.

The association had previously approached the High Court over the issue but withdrew its earlier petition on May 29, retaining the liberty to initiate fresh proceedings if schools were again asked to provide teaching staff. The latest challenge followed the issuance of the two September communications.

𝗛𝗮𝗿𝘆𝗮𝗻𝗮 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗲𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗖𝗲𝗻𝘀𝘂𝘀 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟳

The dispute has emerged as Haryana prepares for Census 2027, which is being conducted through a substantially digital process. The state government has been undertaking administrative preparations, including identifying personnel, coordinating with district authorities and arranging training for enumerators and supervisors.

According to the state's preparations announced earlier this year, approximately 60,000 government employees, preferably teachers and other government personnel, were expected to be deployed as enumerators and supervisors during the first phase of Census operations.

The scale of the exercise presents a considerable staffing challenge. Haryana has undergone administrative and demographic changes since the previous Census in 2011, with an increase in the number of districts and sub-districts and changes in the distribution of urban and rural settlements. The number of houselisting blocks for Census 2027 was estimated at approximately 51,000, compared with 45,361 during the previous enumeration.

The Census is being conducted in two phases, beginning with houselisting and the housing census, followed by population enumeration, which will also collect caste-related information. The nationwide exercise was originally scheduled for 2021 but was postponed following the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Union Cabinet has approved an expenditure of Rs 11,718 crore for Census 2027, reflecting the extensive logistical and technological requirements of the exercise.

𝗟𝗲𝗴𝗮𝗹 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝗽𝘂𝘁𝗲 𝗿𝗮𝗶𝘀𝗲𝘀 𝗯𝗿𝗼𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗾𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀

The controversy highlights the competing considerations involved in organising a nationwide population count. Census authorities require a sufficiently large and trained workforce to complete enumeration within prescribed timelines, while private educational institutions have raised concerns about compulsory deployment and the potential disruption of academic activities.

The central legal question concerns the extent of government authority to requisition personnel from institutions outside the conventional public administrative structure. The petition also raises the issue of whether administrative requirements can justify directing privately employed teachers to undertake duties unrelated to their regular professional responsibilities.

Friday's amendment seeks to provide an explicit regulatory basis for drawing personnel from a wider range of institutions. Its effect on the pending litigation, however, remains to be tested, particularly because the High Court's interim order was issued before the revised rules were notified.

For Haryana, the immediate challenge will be to reconcile its staffing requirements with the court's directions while continuing preparations for Census 2027. For private unaided schools, the proceedings will determine the extent of their obligations under the revised legal framework.

With the Centre now explicitly including private educational institutions in the eligible pool of Census personnel, the dispute has moved beyond the original administrative communications to a wider examination of statutory powers and institutional autonomy. The next hearing will provide an opportunity for the parties to address these developments, even as preparations for the nationwide enumeration continue.