DCO warns any exercise carried out after the freeze will lead to serious discrepancies in census data
PANAJI
Amid confusion over ward delimitation ahead of the upcoming municipal elections, the Directorate of Census Operations (DCO), Goa has cautioned the State government that any changes to ward boundaries after December 31, 2025 would lead to serious discrepancies in census data.
The DCO clarified that administrative boundaries across the country have been frozen with effect from December 31, 2025 in view of the nationwide decadal Census scheduled for 2026–27. As a result, there is no scope for altering ward boundaries within municipal councils or panchayat areas during this period.
The warning comes at a time when 11 municipal councils and the Panaji Municipal Corporation are scheduled to go to the polls in March-April this year, triggering discussions on ward delimitation and reservation.
Speaking to The Goan, Deputy Director, DCO Goa, Sweta Nandwana said that both the Centre and the State government have issued notifications freezing administrative boundaries from December 31, 2025. “Once the boundaries are frozen, the State government cannot undertake any delimitation of wards within municipal or panchayat areas,” she said.
She further cautioned that if the government proceeds with delimitation despite the freeze, the census data would still be compiled and released based on the ward boundaries that existed prior to December 31, 2025. “Whatever delimitation changes are made after December 31 will not be taken into account for enumeration purposes,” Nandwana explained.
Although the DCO does not have the authority to issue directions to the State, Nandwana reiterated that the freeze effectively restrains any changes to administrative boundaries. “We cannot issue directions as such, but since the boundaries are frozen, no changes can be recognised for census purposes,” she said.
Sources warned that any post-freeze delimitation could result in confusion and chaos once the census data is published. “For instance, if a person or building was recorded in Ward III of Margao municipal area before December 31, and subsequent delimitation places it in Ward II, the final census data will still reflect it under Ward III. This mismatch is where confusion will begin,” sources explained.
The issue has gained political traction following Chief Minister Pramod Sawant’s recent statement in the Assembly that the government has not taken any decision to freeze the boundaries of municipalities or city corporations. Sawant had said that decisions related to delimitation and reservation of wards fall within the jurisdiction of the State Election Commission.
