Imphal, Jan 4: The Manipur government has frozen the administrative boundaries of all districts, tehsils and villages to facilitate the upcoming census operation, even as civil society organisations intensified demands for updating the National Register of Citizens before any enumeration exercise.
In an order signed by Additional Secretary (Home) Ahanthem Subhash Singh, the Governor of Manipur, exercising powers under the Census Rules, 1990, directed that all administrative boundaries would remain frozen from January 1, 2026 to March 31, 2027. The order stated that the decision was taken to ensure the smooth conduct of census operations in the state.
The move came against the backdrop of mounting concerns raised by civil society bodies and political groups over conducting the census amid ongoing ethnic unrest and unresolved issues related to illegal immigration and internal displacement.
A recent conclave of political parties, organised by the Campaign for Just and Fair Delimitation on December 27, 2025, resolved to seek postponement of census operations in Manipur until normalcy was fully restored. The participants demanded resettlement of internally displaced persons in their original homes, restoration of free movement and normal administration, and identification of illegal immigrants through an updated NRC or a similar mechanism before any census was undertaken.
The Joint Committee Opposing Delimitation Exercise in Manipur (Kanglei-pak) had earlier echoed similar concerns, warning that a census conducted without updating the NRC could have serious implications for the state. The committee pointed out that Manipur continued to rely on provisional and disputed 2001 census data, as the final report was never released due to alleged irregularities and bogus entries.
JCODEM also highlighted unusually high population growth recorded between 1991 and 2001, particularly in Chandel district, which registered a decadal growth rate of 66.62 per cent, far exceeding the state and national averages.
The developments have intensified the debate over census operations, delimitation and population data in Manipur, with stakeholders calling for greater transparency and safeguards before proceeding with any major demographic exercise.
