Exclusive: Modi Govt sets eight goals to improve statistics, data accuracy over next 5 years after elections

PM Modi's plan for first 100 days post elections

The government has set and adopted an eight-point, target-driven roadmap for the next five years to improve India’s statistics, data accuracy and prevent delays, a senior official said.

On February 12, 2024, senior bureaucrats of the statistics ministry made a presentation to the Prime Minister’s Office on measures to be taken to improve India's data collection, accuracy and analysis. PK Mishra, principal secretary to the Prime Minister, presided over the meeting, which lasted about an hour.

The quality and frequency of India's data collection have been points of contention for several years. According to people present at the meeting, the ministry's recommendations were adopted, and a roadmap was put in place to upgrade India’s data collection.

The roadmap includes improving the national accounts statistics of gross domestic product, industrial production and inflation, reinvigorating the National Statistical Commission, working with other ministries to improve administrative statistics, and revamping the data repository.

“A roadmap for the statistics ministry to reform the Indian statistical system has been adopted for five years after elections. There are eight goals set to improve the statistics as there has been a lot of mistrust on the data,” the official told Moneycontrol.

Core statistics

A parliamentary panel had questioned the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) last year on the delay in the economic census. The panel said in a report in July 2023 the ministry must “accelerate data collection, foster close collaboration with states and ensure timely approval of the provisional results by the state-level coordination committees.”

One of the eight goals is to improve derived or core statistics. The national accounts statistics of GDP (gross domestic product) and GVA (gross value added) and IIP (Index of Industrial Production) and CPI (Consumer Price Index) data need to be improved, the people said.

“An advisory committee of national accounts statistics will be soon formed to consider the methodology and base year change. The base year change was already delayed due to the pandemic,” the official said.

The National Accounts Division (NAD) of MoSPI maintains detailed, well-documented methods and procedures for arriving at estimates of GDP, IIP and CPI. When the base year is revised, efforts are made to improve these methods to bridge data gaps and introduce new and better-quality data.

Another goal is to improve administrative data from other ministries. Administrative data is generated as a by-product of public administration and includes information such as land records, collection of direct and indirect taxes, and civil registration of births and deaths. The national accounts division derives estimates of national income from administrative data as well as data collected directly through censuses and sample surveys.

Improving administrative data from other ministries with better coordination is another focus area, the official said.

The National Statistical Commission, an advisory body on statistical policies, needs to be reformed and reinvigorated, the official said. The NSC was constituted on July 12, 2006, with a mandate to evolve policies, priorities and standards in statistical matters, according to the MoSPI website.

The revamp includes addressing delays in National Sample Survey Office (NSSO) studies. The Census 2021 and Annual Survey on Unincorporated Sector Enterprises (ASUSE), among others, have been delayed due to the pandemic and other reasons.

“Improving the institutional mechanism by revamping the data repository of the other ministries is another goal set for improving the Indian statistical system over the next five years,” the official said.