Census 2026
Los Angeles/Apr 28, 2026
NRIpress.club/Ramesh/ A.Gary Singh
Statistics Canada conducts a countrywide comprehensive census every five years. As part of this, Canadian households are required to complete appropriate census forms about each occupant of that dwelling. In the North, this process has already started. In the rest of Canada, it will start as of May1. The questionnaire is quite comprehensive. It contains questions relating to various aspects of each occupant of the households. Completing and returning the census form –online or print- is our civic responsibility. It is mandatory under the Statistics Act. Every resident of Canada –Citizen, Permanent Resident, Temporary Foreign Worker and Visitor- is required to be included in this enumeration. Every household is requested to complete this form and return it as soon as possible. Statistics Canada has hired 32,000 workers to assist Canadians complete and collect these forms. The Census 2026 includes three questions pertaining to language.
One of these questions is about a person’s mother language. The second question is about the most spoken language at home. The third question is about knowledge of other languages. On behalf of Punjabi Language Education Association (PLEA) we would like to request everyone to fill the Census form and return it to the appropriate address or worker. Also, we would like to request speakers, supporters and well-wishers of Punjabi language to include Punjabi in their responses. Answers to the language questions determine the linguistic diversity of Canada. Responses to the language related questions are helpful in supporting both the official and non-official languages of Canada as specified in the Charter of Canada.
Statistics Canada is a very credible and internationally recognized institution. All of the questions on these questionnaires are very well scrutinized and refined. For example, the question: Can this person speak ... ? Was refined to: Does this person speak ...? Similarly, sign language was added to other languages. Also, 222,000 households across the country were selected to participate in the Census Test to finalize questions for the 2026 Census. As comparison of the population growth in Canada, the 2021 Census had 36,991,981 persons in Canada in 2021. This was a growth of 5.2 over households in 2016. The 2026 Census will show the growth in 2026 over the last five years.
In the 2021 Census, Punjabi came as the third most spoken language behind English and French.763,785 persons identified Punjabi as their mother tongue whereas 827,150 persons marked Punjabi as the language most spoken at home. During the past five years there has been considerable increase in the number of international students, PRs, Temporary Foreign workers and visitors whose mother tongue may be Punjabi. Hopefully, every speaker, supporter and well-wisher of Punjabi language will be included in the 2026 Census.
Balwant Sanghera
President, Punjabi Language Education Association (PLEA)
Sadhu Binning, Vice President, Punjabi Language Education Association (PLEA)
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