India Statistical System

The Union Cabinet is likely to approve Indian Statistical Institute Bill, 2026, which provides for incorporation of Indian Statistical Institute (ISI) as a body corporate and a framework for its effective governance, Parliament was informed on Wednesday. The draft Indian Statistical Institute Bill, 2026 aims at enhancing ISI's autonomy and accountability, stated Minister of State for Statistics and Programme Implementation Rao Inderjit Singh in a written reply to the Lok Sabha. "The process of Cabinet approval has been initiated. The matter is under consideration in accordance with the prescribed procedure," Singh said. The pre-legislative consultation, including inter-ministerial consultation, on the draft ISI Bill has concluded. Legal vetting of the draft has also been completed, he added. The bill provides more robust and contemporary governance framework which will enable ISI to emerge as a globally recognised centre of excellence in statistical and allied disciplines, he state

India will shift GDP base year to FY23 and adopt price deflators and double deflation to improve accuracy, reflect structural shifts, and align national accounts with global standards

With India's economy expanding rapidly and global investor interest growing, official figures are facing more scrutiny. Calls are mounting for more accurate economic data

The proposed business register will be prepared using data from the economic census (EC), state specific databases and central databases

Underscoring the ramifications that data gaps have a cascading effect on the economy, the Karnataka High Court has dismissed a petition filed by a company that did not provide statistics of its operations for the year 2011. Action had been initiated against M/s Masturlal Pvt Ltd, which manufactures technical units of textiles used in industries, under the Collection of Statistics Act in 2015. The company approached the HC in 2022 against it. In a recent judgement, Justice M Nagaprasanna said any negligence on the part of any company will undoubtedly have a spiralling effect on the economic policies of the nation, which is the driving force of any nation among others. On the significance of the data collection, the HC said: "It is in public domain that Indian statistical system is one of the best systems in the world. The country participates in all the international and regional organisations of the United National Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific on statistic

The deliberations by MoSPI will see participation of officials from other ministries and departments, and will feature nine points of discussion

CAA protests can undermine credibility of statistics

India already has a National Statistical Commission as the nodal agency for core statistical activities. Will a new National Statistical Office do that better? Experts differ in their views