New Delhi, June 29 -- Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister Dr P K Mishra on Monday said administrative data must be treated as a strategic national asset to strengthen evidence-based policymaking, improve public service delivery and build AI-ready governance, while stressing that privacy, transparency & credibility of official statistics must remain paramount
Addressing the 20th Statistics Day celebrations as chief guest, Dr Mishra paid tribute to Professor P C Mahalanobis on his birth anniversary, recalling his pioneering role in building India's statistical system. He said this year's theme, "Unlocking the Potential of Administrative Data," is timely and aligns with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision of data-driven governance and Viksit Bharat @2047. He congratulated the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) on releasing its Vision Document 2026-31, the Sustainable Development Goals Progress Report and the first city-level estimates of labour markets and informal enterprises. He also felicitated Professor Arup Bose with the Sukhatme National Award.
Recalling India's leadership in statistics, Dr Mishra said the country built one of the world's finest survey-based statistical systems in the 1950s, with the National Sample Survey becoming a globally recognised model. He also acknowledged the contributions of Mahalanobis, C R Rao and P V Sukhatme to statistical science. Highlighting the modernisation of India's statistical system, Dr Mishra said MoSPI undertook extensive reforms after identifying challenges such as outdated datasets, delays in data dissemination, fragmented statistical architecture and uneven data quality. Based on consultations with experts and institutions, the ministry adopted 216 recommendations for time-bound implementation, leading to new demand-based surveys, updated macroeconomic indicators, improved data dissemination and other procedural reforms.
He credited the Prime Minister's Office and MoSPI for driving the reform process between 2020 and 2025, with the PMO acting as a facilitator while the ministry leveraged its institutional expertise to build a stronger statistical system.
Emphasising the importance of administrative data, Dr Mishra said India's digital transformation has created vast data repositories that can significantly improve policymaking. He called for interoperable data ecosystems across ministries, departments, states and Union Territories to enable secure data sharing while maintaining high standards of privacy, security and confidentiality.
He said trusted datasets would support responsible adoption of artificial intelligence in governance. MoSPI has modernised surveys through Computer-Assisted Personal Interviewing (CAPI), introduced high-frequency surveys, revised sampling designs for district-level estimates and is updating the base years for GDP, Consumer Price Index & Index of Industrial Production. Digital initiatives such as the National Metadata Structure 2.0, Open APIs, e-Sankhyiki, GoIStats, PAIMANA and e-SAKSHI are also improving data accessibility and interoperability.
Dr. Mishra said AI adoption must be backed by robust governance frameworks to address bias, accountability and explainability. Concluding his address, he said reliable data and strong institutional safeguards are essential to realise the full potential of administrative data and ensure that no citizen is left behind.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.