Teachers on Census work deemed on school duty; cannot refuse assignment, says Calcutta HC

What happened (Calcutta High Court ruling on Census-deputed teachers)

The Calcutta High Court held that teachers deputed for Census population-survey work must be treated as being on their regular school duty and cannot refuse the Census assignment. The Court said Census activities are required for the country’s required enumeration and cannot be avoided.

The Calcutta High Court directed the Census Operations director and the designated charge officer to specify the Census assignment details—date, time, and location—up to the head of the institution before proceeding to use teachers’ services.

Background and earlier position (use of teachers for Census field work)

Census operations require large-scale enumeration and rely on government personnel for survey-related tasks. In such deployments, disputes can arise about whether school teachers remain on regular school duty in law and service classification, and whether refusal is permissible.

What changed now (no-refusal rule and a communication requirement)