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The iconic art deco English Heritage Grade II  Zoroastrian Centre was selected to participate in the "2021 Census Light up England and Wales weekend” from March 19 to 21, 2021, conveyed Malcolm Deboo, president of the Zoroastrian Trust Funds of Europe. In the London borough of Harrow, besides the Zoroastrian Centre, the Harrow Civic Centre was lit up in purple. These were among the nearly 100 buildings and monuments, including the BT Tower and Blackpool Tower, that were selected from across the nation for illumination in the Census 2021 brand color purple.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The illumination effort was organized by The Office for National Statistics (ONS) to raise awareness of census day, March 21. The last census in 2011 showed Harrow to be one of the most religiously diverse places in the country with 40 different religions, including Zoroastrianism, practised in the borough, reported Deboo. "Don’t forget to complete your census 2021 form by March 21, 2021. You must complete the census by law or you could be fined up to GBP 1,000 (Rs 1,00,279),” cautioned Deboo who believes "Completing the census, whatever your background, shows that you care about your community and its future.”
Included in the online census questionnaire with a unique access code assigned to every household is the optional Question 16 enquiring about the respondent’s religion. "It is important for ALL Zoroastrians to complete the question on your religion,” urged Deboo, clarifying that although Zoroastrianism will not feature among the options, respondents "must tick OTHER and then specify Zoroastrian, or Zoroastrian Parsi, or Zoroastrian Parsee, or Zoroastrian Irani. The ONS will pick up these permutations. Preferably simply write Zoroastrian. Do not write Zarathusti, Zarathusthy, Zarathushtrian, etc.” Census 2021 also includes Question 14 on national identity, 15 on ethnic group, and 18 on language. "You may wish to give further thought before completing these questions,” alerted Deboo. Although the census results will be available in 2022, "personal records will be locked away for 100 years, kept safe for future generations,” noted a press release.
As commented Pete Benton, ONS director of census operations, "The census is such an important undertaking that helps inform the vital services we all rely on every single day. We wanted to shine a (purple!) light on the buildings and landmarks that matter most to local areas, highlighting the importance of the census in helping shape the communities we live in.” Operating impartially and free of political control, ONS is committed to mobilizing the power of data to help Britain make better decisions and improve emergency services, mental health care, school places, hospital beds and medical services, houses and roads, based on the information people give.