Stories
States Struggle to Provide Religion-Wise Data to Demography Panel
M
Moneycontrol•29-09-2026, 12:26
States Struggle to Provide Religion-Wise Data to Demography Panel
- •State governments face difficulties responding to a high-level committee's queries on demographic changes, as departments typically do not maintain religion-wise data.
- •The High-Level Committee on Demographic Changes (HLCDC), formed by the Ministry of Home Affairs, seeks to study demographic shifts from illegal immigration and other "abnormal reasons."
- •The committee's questionnaire includes 35 questions requesting religion-wise and district-wise data over 15 years on birth registrations, school enrollment, vehicle registrations, property transactions, and increases in Aadhaar, voter ID, and ration card registrations.
- •States are also asked for details on religious structures established in the last 15 years, changes in religious composition in specific areas, and intelligence assessments on religious conversions among Scheduled Tribe communities.
- •Officials indicate that most requested religion-wise information is unavailable due to the constitutional framework, which generally prevents government departments from collecting such data.
Key Questions Answered
The High-Level Committee on Demographic Changes was constituted by the Ministry of Home Affairs to study demographic changes arising from illegal immigration and other abnormal reasons, and to suggest measures to address them.
The committee is headed by Justice Prakash Prabhakar Naolekar, a retired Supreme Court judge.
State officials report that government departments do not ordinarily maintain much of the requested information on a religion-wise basis, citing the constitutional framework as a reason why such data is generally not collected.
