What was the total population of India according to the Census 2011?

Concept: The Census of India is the decennial headcount of the entire population, conducted under the Census Act, 1948, by the Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner of India; "Census" is Entry 69 of the Union List in the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution, so it is a Union subject. The number the census reports is the population actually enumerated at the census reference moment (00:00 hours of 1 March of the census year) — it is a count, not a projection or a mid-year estimate. Indian official figures are quoted in crore, where 1 crore = 1,00,00,000 = 10 million.

Application: Census 2011 was India’s 15th census and the 7th since independence. Converting its enumerated total into crore:

1. Enumerated total population: 1,21,08,54,977 persons (62,32,70,258 males and 58,75,84,719 females).

2. Divide by the value of one crore: 1,21,08,54,977 ÷ 1,00,00,000 = 121.0854977 crore.

3. Round to two decimal places, the form used in official releases: 121.0854977 ≈ 121.09 crore.

Cross-check: Verify the same figure from the decadal growth rate instead of the raw count. The 2001 Census enumerated 102.87 crore and the officially reported decadal growth for 2001–2011 was 17.70%. Applying it: 102.87 × 1.1770 ≈ 121.1 crore — the same magnitude, reached by an independent route.

Placing it in the decennial series makes the scale of each figure clear:

Result: The total population of India as enumerated by the Census 2011 was 121.09 crore, i.e. 1,21,08,54,977 persons. Figures in the neighbourhood of 132 crore are post-censal projections for the early 2020s, not the 2011 enumerated count.