NEW DELHI: In its annual report for 2021–22, the Union Ministry of Home Affairs said that the National Population Register needed to be updated (NPR).

The report, which was released on Monday (November 7), has highlighted the requirement to update the NPR database nationwide, with the exception of Assam. According to report, this will make it feasible to identify changes in demographic data caused by births, deaths, and migration in the nation as well as to collect information on individuals and their families.

The job of updating the NPR and other field activities had been put on hold as a due to Covid-19 outbreak,  the ministry report said.

The citizens will be able to update the NPR data themselves, the home ministry added. Neither biometrics nor documents will be collected during the update. A budget of Rs 3,941 crore has been authorised for the same by the Central government.  As per the report, the NPR was created in accordance with a number of rules imposed by the Citizenship Act of 1955, or Citizenship Act of 2003.

In addition to updating the name, gender, date of birth, place of birth, and domicile, the Aadhaar number, mobile number, and ration card number were also collected. The registry needs to be updated, the government said, to reflect changes brought on by births, deaths, and migration.

In 2015, the NPR was upgraded after being created in 2010. It was opposed by several political parties, who said it was a step toward creating the National Register of Citizens (NRC).

The report states that a total of 1,414 persons nationwide received certificates of citizenship under the Citizenship Act of 1955 between April 1, 2021, and December 31, 2021.

The ministry informed that individuals from the Hindu, Sikh, Jain, Buddhist, Christian, and Parsi communities from Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh may now apply for Indian citizenship following an investigation by the District Magistrates of 29 districts and the Home Secretaries of nine states.

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