Ranchi, Jan. 8: The second phase of Census 2011, to be carried out between February 9 and 28, will focus on women in seven districts, which have sex ratios below the national average of 933.

Surveyors for the second phase have been trained to take extra care to note details of women, especially in the districts of Garhwa, Palamau, Giridih, Sahebganj, Pakur, Dhanbad and Bokaro.

Enumerators will record details of educational qualifications and occupation of women across the state in this phase, during which the actual head count is due, after details of houses and individuals were listed for a National Population Register during the first phase from June 15 to August 1 last year.

“During Census 2001, the sex ratio of the seven districts were found to be below the national average. For Census 2011, the surveyors will take extra care to count the female population in these districts,” Sunil Kumar Burnwal, director, census operations, Jharkhand, told The Telegraph.

Interestingly, despite being saddled with political instability and a high percentage of population living below the poverty line, Jharkhand boasts of a better sex ratio than the national average — 941 women per 1,000 men.

The second phase will be followed by a revision for five days, beginning March 1. The directorate of census operations, Jharkhand, will announce the “provisional population” of Jharkhand within three weeks of March 5 and submit its data to the government of India.

Burnwal said the surveyors had been specifically told to question the women, instead of relying on the male members of a family, to get accurate data on female literacy, occupation, among others. The 2001 Census recorded a female literacy rate of merely 39.38 per cent, as against 67.94 per cent among males in the state. Jharkhand’s overall literacy rate stands at 54.13 per cent.

“Even if the women have attended only a year or two at school, the surveyors have been asked to record it. Besides, several women contribute to the family economy by joining men in agricultural tasks and domestic economic activities,” Burnwal said. He added, “Such women would be considered as working and not homemakers alone.”

The census directorate has prepared a questionnaire of 29 queries dealing with different aspects of an individual, whose name and address are entered in Census records. These include age, educational qualification, occupation, urban or rural habitation and sources of livelihood.

The state directorate has trained as many as 70,000 surveyors for the head count across Jharkhand. The second phase will also list houses that have come up after first phase ended on August 1 2010.

Besides, the destitute living on roadsides, railway stations and bus stands, will also be taken into account on the night of February 28.