Seasonal migrant workers power India’s economy, yet many remain invisible in census data and excluded from welfare services. By Kanak Aggarwal, Amit Kumar In the villages, we don’t have agricultural land. We work as labourers on other farms and for about four months, we work in brick kilns to supplement our income,”. India's 16th Census began on April 1, 2026, with a Union Cabinet-approved budget of ₹11,718.