NEW DELHI: Reforms undertaken by India’s official statistical machinery in recent years have led to updating of macroeconomic indicators, improved data dissemination, introduction of new and user demand-based surveys, laying the foundation for a more robust, credible and future ready statistical system, principal secretary to PM PK Mishra said Monday. Addressing an event on Statistics Day, Mishra said that starting 2020, several key steps were taken by PMO and statistics ministry to “analyse, identify and address” challenges and criticism levelled against official data pertaining to outdated datasets, delays in dissemination, uneven quality and declining professional capacity. “These concerns prompted a comprehensive reform exercise through consultations with experts, institutions and stakeholders. Based on these deliberations, the ministry accepted 216 recommendations for time-bound implementation under an institutional oversight mechanism,” said Mishra. “Administrative data can become a powerful national asset only when backed by robust standards of quality, privacy and transparency, the need to preserve the credibility and independence of official statistics while embracing new data sources,” he said. Mishra also called for the creation of interoperable and integrated data ecosystems that will facilitate secure data sharing. Statistics secretary Saurabh Garg said the next major governance leap will come from integrating the siloed govt datasets to create a unified understanding of the society as harmonised administrative data can enable more evidence-based and citizen-centric policymaking.
