National Population Register, database of Indian Citizens, gets Cabinet nod

New Delhi: The Union Cabinet on Tuesday (December 24) approved the proposal to update the National Population Register. According to the Census commission, the objective of the National Population Register will be to create a comprehensive identity database of every resident of the country. 

The census will kickstart from April 1, 2020.

According to the law, a 'usual resident' for the NPR is a person who has lived in an area for at least six months or more or a person who intends to live in an area for six months or more. It is mandatory for every citizen of the country to register in the NPR.

In the meantime, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has opposed the National Population Register, saying the state government will not cooperate with the process to update the NPR to facilitate the preparations of National Register of Citizens (NRC).  

Apart from West Bengal, Kerala and Punjab have also refused to implement the law into their states, although the Centre has stated clearly that the states have no choice in the matter.