Census training put off in Imphal West amid protests demanding NRC

Against the backdrop of protests over the NRC demand, the Manipur administration has deferred a training programme for enumerators and supervisors under the Census 2027 in Imphal West district, an official noted on Thursday.

Key points

• The programme was meant for enumerators and supervisors for phase one of Census 2027, he remarked.
• The Manipur administration on Wednesday unveiled that all educational institutes in the state would remain closed for three days from August 20, citing the "prevailing law-and-order situation".
• The training programme under the first phase of the census exercise was scheduled to commence on August 20.
• The JFD has additionally unveiled a boycott of all administration offices from Thursday as part of its ongoing agitation.

"The training programme scheduled to commence from August 28, 2026, is hereby deferred in view of the prevailing law and order situation in the district, " the official remarked, citing a letter sent to the chief principal census officer of the Directorate of Census Operations.

For context, the programme was meant for enumerators and supervisors for phase one of Census 2027, he remarked.

"Teachers assigned as enumerators and supervisors for the census are facing embarrassment, humiliation and different forms of obstacles while attending training sessions, " remarked the Council of Teachers' Associations (COTA), Manipur.

Meanwhile, the training programme under the first phase of the census exercise was scheduled to commence on August 20.

Protesters had on Wednesday burnt effigies of politicians and took out rallies in different parts of Manipur's valley districts on the second day of the 48-hour general strike called by the Campaign for Just and Fair Delimitation (JFD) to press for updation of the NRC before the census exercise is conducted in the state.

In practice, the JFD has additionally unveiled a boycott of all administration offices from Thursday as part of its ongoing agitation.

Meanwhile, the Manipur administration on Wednesday unveiled that all educational institutes in the state would remain closed for three days from August 20, citing the "prevailing law-and-order situation". Manipur census row: Schools shut, rallies and road blockades continue.

For now, census training put off in Imphal West amid protests demanding NRC remains the part of the story worth watching, and further updates are likely as more details are confirmed.