Shorter interviews
Respondents hear only relevant questions, which shortens interviews and reduces fatigue in the last sections.
Survey app · Forms
Build once on the web, run on every enumerator's Android phone
Bharat Survey's mobile form builder app is for research teams, NGOs, departments and campaigns whose questionnaires have real logic: routing, rosters, range checks and consent. You build or import the form in the web panel, test it, approve a version and publish it. Enumerators receive it on an offline Android app, and every record remembers the exact form version it was collected on.
- Skip logic, relevance and required rules
- Range, format and cross-question validation
- Repeat groups for household rosters
- XLSForm import and versioned publishing
Survey 3/6 · Public amenities
How is drinking water in your area?
- Comes regularly
- Comes sometimes
- Rarely / never
- Don't know
BackNext
✓ Saved on phone · autosave
Sync statussample
6
Safe on phone
8
Synced to server
#BS-0413 · In area · ±12 m Added to accepted count
Survey 3/6 · AmenitiesOffline
How is drinking water in your area?
- Comes regularly
- Comes sometimes
- Rarely / never
- Don't know
✓ Section saved on phone · autosave
BackNext
Skip logicValidation rulesRepeat groupsChoice listsConsent screensForm versionsXLSForm importHindi and English labels
The logic
Three ideas carry almost every well-built questionnaire. The builder supports all three.
Routing
Question routing survey rules
A question appears only when earlier answers make it relevant. If a household has no children under five, the child nutrition section never shows, and the enumerator never scrolls past it.
Checks
Survey with data validation at entry
Age between 0 and 120. Children's ages lower than the mother's. Phone numbers with ten digits. The app refuses impossible answers while the respondent is still there to correct them.
Rosters
Repeat groups
The same block of questions asked once per household member, plot or crop. The enumerator adds members one by one; the data exports one row per member, linked to the household.
From draft to field
A form reaches enumerators only after it has passed each stage. That protects data already collected.
- 01
Build or import
Create questions, choice lists and rules in the web panel, or import an XLSForm your team already has. Labels can be written in Hindi, English or the language of the study area.Research leadSurvey 3/6 · Public amenitiesHow is drinking water in your area?- Comes regularly
- Comes sometimes
- Rarely / never
- Don't know
BackNext✓ Saved on phone · autosaveSync statussample6Safe on phone8Synced to server#BS-0413 · In area · ±12 m Added to accepted count - 02
Test on a phone
Run the draft on a test device. Walk through the routes, try impossible answers and time the interview before anyone goes to the field.Research leadSurvey 3/6 · AmenitiesOfflineHow is drinking water in your area?- Comes regularly
- Comes sometimes
- Rarely / never
- Don't know
✓ Section saved on phone · autosaveBackNext - 03
Approve a version
An approver signs off the draft. It becomes a numbered version. Changes later create a new version instead of silently editing the old one.Approver3,000Target outlets2,184Visited1,962Audited1,871AcceptedDaily accepted auditsLast 12 days - 04
Publish to assigned teams
The version downloads with each enumerator's work permit. Records carry the version number, so analysts know which wording each answer used.SupervisorShift onHello, Ram KumarToday's workAssignmentGram Panchayat BarauliTarget 40 homes14 done15 done16 done17 doneShiftOn · 2:14 hSync6 phone · 8 serverToday's homes- Home 15 · RamlalDone
- Home 16 · SunitaDone
- Home 17 · LockedRevisit
- Home 18 · MohanFilling…
✓ #BS-0413 synced to serverStart new survey
Survey 3/6 · Public amenities
How is drinking water in your area?
- Comes regularly
- Comes sometimes
- Rarely / never
- Don't know
BackNext
✓ Saved on phone · autosave
Sync statussample
6
Safe on phone
8
Synced to server
#BS-0413 · In area · ±12 m Added to accepted count
Survey 3/6 · AmenitiesOffline
How is drinking water in your area?
- Comes regularly
- Comes sometimes
- Rarely / never
- Don't know
✓ Section saved on phone · autosave
BackNext
3,000
Target outlets
2,184
Visited
1,962
Audited
1,871
Accepted
Daily accepted auditsLast 12 days
Hello, Ram Kumar
Today's work
Assignment
Gram Panchayat Barauli
Target 40 homes14 done15 done16 done17 done
Shift
On · 2:14 h
Sync
6 phone · 8 server
Today's homes
- Home 15 · RamlalDone
- Home 16 · SunitaDone
- Home 17 · LockedRevisit
- Home 18 · MohanFilling…
✓ #BS-0413 synced to server
Start new surveyOur view
In the field
Logic runs on the phone
Routing and validation are evaluated on the device, not on a server. A village with no signal gets the same checks as a city office. Answers autosave as the enumerator moves through sections, so a phone call or a flat battery does not lose the interview.
- Autosave during the interview
- Encrypted local storage
- Same rules online and offline
Survey 3/6 · AmenitiesOffline
How is drinking water in your area?
- Comes regularly
- Comes sometimes
- Rarely / never
- Don't know
✓ Section saved on phone · autosave
BackNext
Evidence built around the form
Arrival check and consent come before the first question. A visit outcome is recorded when no interview happens. Location, time and duration attach to every record and are checked after sync.
- Consent screen
- Visit outcome codes
- Location evidence
Location evidence
Survey #BS-0412
- In areaInside approx. boundary
- Accuracy±12 m
- Time09:42 · fresh fix
- Mock GPSNot detected
- Interview length11 min
Added to accepted count
Standards
XLSForm is a spreadsheet standard for describing forms: one sheet for questions, one for choices, one for settings. Many Indian research teams already write their instruments this way for ODK-based tools. Bharat Survey imports XLSForm so that work is not lost.
XLSForm builder India teams: what usually carries over
Question types in common use, choice lists, relevance expressions, constraints with messages, required flags and repeat groups. During setup we run your file through the import and list anything that needs a change, such as a question type or function we do not support, before your pilot rather than after.
When to use the web builder instead
If nobody on the team writes spreadsheet forms, build directly in the web panel. Small edits such as fixing a label or adding a choice are quicker there too, and each edit still goes through versioning.
Send with your XLSForm
- The file itself
- Languages used in labels
- Target interview length
- Any external choice lists
- Sample of expected answers
Decision aid
| Capability | Status |
|---|---|
| Skip logic, relevance and required rules | Included |
| Range, format and cross-question validation | Included |
| Repeat groups for rosters | Included |
| Form versioning and approval | Included |
| XLSForm import | Included |
| Photo questions, compressed on device | Included |
| Consent and visit outcome screens | Included |
| Signature capture | Not in v1 |
| Barcode or QR scanning | Not in v1 |
| Audio recording questions | Not in v1 |
| iOS app | Not available |
Why logic matters
Fewer impossible values
Out-of-range and contradictory answers are stopped at entry instead of flagged in cleaning.
Cleaner exports
Skipped questions are empty by design, not by mistake, so analysts can trust missing values.
Traceable wording
Each record's form version tells analysts exactly which question text was asked.
Not the right fit if
- You want public web forms that respondents fill themselves
- You need signature, barcode or audio questions today
- Your team collects on iPhones or iPads
- You need a free drag-and-drop tool for occasional use
A good fit if
- Questionnaires with serious routing and rosters
- Enumerators working offline for days
- Teams moving from XLSForm-based tools
- Projects where form versions must be auditable
Features
Everything the platform does.
Learn moreField inspection app
Checklists built with the same builder.
Learn moreCustomer feedback software
Short scored forms with routing.
Learn moreSurvey app development
Custom workflows on the core app.
Learn moreWhatsApp and SMS surveys
Messaging channels and their limits.
Learn moreFAQ
Straight answers to the questions people ask most about this topic.
Do I need to know XLSForm to build a form?
No. Forms can be built in the web panel without spreadsheets. XLSForm import is there for teams that already have instruments written for ODK, KoboToolbox or SurveyCTO, so they do not need to rebuild them.
What happens to data if I change a published form?
Nothing is overwritten. A change creates a new form version that goes through approval before publishing. Records already collected keep the version they were collected on, so analysts can see which wording applied to each answer.
Can one form have Hindi and English questions?
Yes. Labels can be written in more than one language, and enumerators see the language set for the form. Translation quality is the team's responsibility, so test both versions with a pilot before full fieldwork.
Does validation work offline?
Yes. Routing and validation rules run on the phone itself, so enumerators get the same checks without network. Records save encrypted on the device and sync later.
Sources: XLSForm standard
India Nationwide, Hindi-first
Send it as it is. We will show it as a working offline form with routing and checks on a test phone.