MUMBAI, Oct. 29 -- As preparations for India's 2027 Census are underway, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has announced that a preliminary test will be held in the city's M West administrative ward, Chembur, next month, from November 10 to 30, 2025. It will be part of a larger effort to fine-tune census operations across India. The last census was conducted in 2011. According to the Directorate of Census Operations, the exercise will cover all key aspects of the census, including house listing and housing enumeration. Residents will also be able to submit their details online through a self-enumeration option available from November 1 to 7, 2025. Officials have appealed to citizens to cooperate with enumerators and supervisors who will visit households to collect data. Maharashtra is one of the states selected for this preparatory round, with three regions chosen for the exercise - Mumbai's M West ward, Chopda taluka in Jalgaon district, and Gaganbawda taluka in Kolhapur district. Within Mumbai, 135 house listing blocks in the M west ward have been identified for the test. A team of 402 enumerators and supervisors will carry out surveys across the state. On Tuesday, BMC commissioner Bhushan Gagrani met the director of the directorate of census operations, Dr Nirupama J Dange, and reviewed preparations for the upcoming exercise. Additional municipal commissioner (western suburbs), Dr Vipin Sharma, was also present during the meeting. The Government of India has already notified its plan to conduct the Census 2027 in two stages. The first phase, focused on house listing and housing data, will be carried out between April and September 2026, while the population enumeration phase will take place in February 2027. Both stages will be conducted in accordance with the Census Act, 1948. Officials emphasised that public cooperation will be crucial to the success of the preliminary test. Residents in the selected areas are urged to provide accurate information to the enumerators and help ensure the smooth conduct of the country's next population count....