Stats ministry to work closely with states on local GDP numbers: Secretary

Purpose is to ensure that data collected is 'accurate and clear', he says

The statistics ministry will step up interacting with governments for data on gross state domestic product (GSDP) and district-wise gross domestic product (GDP), said Saurabh Garg, secretary at the ministry, in Chennai on Friday.

“Going forward, we look to interact more with the state governments to ensure that data which is collected is accurate and clear so that the GSDP figures or the district-level figures [are accurate], so that policy-making is much more [better],” said Garg at a data users conference on the recently released Annual Survey of Unincorporated Sector Enterprises.

States release district-wise data with a lag and may not update it frequently. “We are working on the availability of data in the usable format,” said Garg, referring to the E-sankhyiki portal launched by the ministry earlier this year.

He highlighted the need for more granular statistics for data-based decision-making and increased focus on technology. “All our data is collected on tablets, we have done away with pen and paper,” said Garg about the work of the ministry of statistics and programme implementation (MoSPI).

R L Karandikar, chairman of National Statistical Commission, told the conference the ministry's work is evolving quickly. “The MoSPI is trying to change and seek opinions on whatever can be done to make data available in a user-friendly format,” he said. Efforts are being made to reduce the time taken to release data and help users.