Hyderabad: The Central government has carried out its first official population enumeration exercise since the formation of Telangana, with the latest estimates released as part of this process indicating a significant rise in both the population and the number of households in the state. According to the figures, Telangana currently has 1.14 crore households with a total population of 4.35 crore. Compared to the 2011 Census, this marks an increase of 31 lakh households and 85 lakh in population. As part of the second phase of the exercise, detailed individual-level data collection is scheduled to be carried out in February 2027.
Since the formation of Telangana, the state government has separately conducted two major surveys. Just six months ago, it carried out a Comprehensive Household Survey, which recorded the state’s population at only 2.55 crore. At the time, the government had noted that around 3 per cent of the population had not participated in the survey, and officials had estimated that even accounting for this gap, the state’s population would not exceed 3.65 crore. However, the Centre’s newly released estimates place the state’s population at over 4.35 crore, a figure considerably higher than what the state government’s own survey had indicated.
The last official census was conducted in 2010-11, when Telangana was still part of undivided Andhra Pradesh. At that time, the population of the Telangana region stood at 3.50 crore, with 83.05 lakh households. Over the intervening years, in addition to overall population growth, the splitting of joint families into smaller, separate households has driven a sharp rise in the number of households. The population has now grown by a further 85 lakh to reach 4.35 crore, while the number of households has increased by 31 lakh to reach 1.14 crore.
Among the most striking findings in the new data is the population of Greater Hyderabad, which alone accounts for 36 lakh households. The population of Greater Hyderabad is now significantly higher than the entire population of the state of Goa. In contrast, undivided Ranga Reddy district has seen an unusual shift: while it had 12.35 lakh households in 2011, the latest estimates show this number falling to 5.65 lakh. This decline is reportedly driven largely by the migration of households from the district to other areas.
District-wise, the number of households (former undivided districts) changed as follows: Hyderabad rose from 21.00 lakh to 36.00 lakh; Nalgonda rose from 8.75 lakh to 10.43 lakh; Karimnagar rose from 9.76 lakh to 10.02 lakh; Warangal rose from 8.86 lakh to 9.69 lakh; Mahbubnagar rose from 8.69 lakh to 9.12 lakh; Medak rose from 6.68 lakh to 8.43 lakh; Adilabad rose from 6.49 lakh to 8.00 lakh; Khammam rose from 6.99 lakh to 7.75 lakh; Nizamabad rose from 5.93 lakh to 7.11 lakh; and Ranga Reddy declined from 12.35 lakh to 5.65 lakh.
Once the detailed enumeration process is completed by February 2027, further clarity on Telangana’s population data is expected to emerge through official channels.