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Rediff.com  » News » Exclusive! PM seeks uniformity in data collection

Exclusive! PM seeks uniformity in data collection

By A Correspondent
February 14, 2011 23:43 IST
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Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has directed the ministries and  government departments not to duplicate official estimates and sought strict compliance to ensure that data and statistics collected are consistent.

When the Gujjar agitation was on in Haryana, a textiles census and a study on reservations for backward classes were being conducted. Apparently, the data collected by these studies differed from the data collected by the National Sample Survey.

When this mistake was pointed out by Cabinet Secretary KM Chandrasekhar, Dr Singh directed a policy circular to be issued to all the secretaries of the government enunciating a single form of data to be used by the Planning Commission.

Chandrasekhar subsequently addressed a letter on February 3, 2011 to all the secretaries, copy of which is reproduced below:

Dear Secretary, 

It has been observed that some ministries and departments are undertaking surveys on certain sectors relating to their charge and also generating and disseminating data on the same

Such data sometimes differs from the data/estimates available in surveys undertaken by the National Sample Survey Organisation and Central Statistical Organisation under the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation. You would agree that creating multiple official estimates of the same underlying variable is not advisable.

Accordingly, with a view to avoiding duplication of efforts and ensuring consistency between different sets of data and also to ensure reliability of data, it has been decided with the approval of the Prime Minister that all steps should be taken to avoid duplication of effort and multiplicity of official data/estimate of the same underlying variables.

Where the ministries and departments still wish to collect data pertaining to aspects for which there are already official estimates prepared by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, the reasons for collecting such data need to be stated clearly and the two efforts should be coordinated.

Further any such data should be produced only with appropriate technical oversight, preferably by the National Statistics Organisation.

Also the ministries and departments should invariably consult the Planning Commission before publishing any statistical data relating to economic status of the population/section of the population of any other sector.

As and when such data is published there should be sufficient explanation for differences if any with already available official data.

You are requested to ensure strict compliance of the above instructions.

Yours sincerely,

K M Chandrasekhar
Cabinet Secretary

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A Correspondent in New Delhi
 
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