How India Counts Itself
Who Counts India?
How India's official statistics are produced by the Ministry of Statistics, the National Statistical Office, the RBI and line ministries, and why good data matter for policy.
Policymakers need data to know what’s happening in the economy.
Main producers
- Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI).
- National Statistical Office (NSO), formed in 2019 by merging the Central Statistics Office and the National Sample Survey Office.
- Registrar General and Census Commissioner: the census.
- RBI: money, banking and balance of payments data.
- Line ministries: health, education, agriculture and labour data.
- State statistics departments.
Key outputs
- GDP and national accounts.
- Inflation (CPI, WPI).
- Employment (PLFS).
- Industrial production (IIP).
- Household surveys on consumption, health and more.
National Statistical Commission
Set up in 2006 to oversee statistical standards and independence.
Why data matter
- Targeting welfare schemes.
- Monetary policy decisions.
- Allocating funds to states.
- Evaluating policies.
Decentralised system
India’s statistics are spread across many agencies, which can create gaps and inconsistencies.
The welfare list
To decide how many families get subsidised grain, the government uses census population data. Outdated data can leave out newly eligible families.
Thinking one office produces all Indian data
Many agencies, from MoSPI to the RBI and ministries, produce statistics.
Key takeaways
- MoSPI and the NSO produce key statistics.
- The census, RBI and ministries add other data.
- The National Statistical Commission oversees standards.
- Good data guide welfare, policy and funding.
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