India’s rapid digital transformation has created vast repositories of administrative data that should be treated as a strategic national asset, Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister, P.K. Mishra said on Monday, calling for integrated and interoperable data ecosystems across Central Ministries, States and Union Territories.
Addressing 20th Statistics Day celebrations here on the theme “Unlocking the Potential of Administrative Data,” Mishra stressed the need to adopt the National Metadata Structure 2.0 to improve data sharing and governance, while cautioning that the use of Artificial Intelligence in governance must be backed by robust safeguards on quality, privacy, accountability and the independence of official statistics.
He said that the journey towards Viksit Bharat must be anchored in reliable data.
Key macroeconomic indicators, including GDP, the Consumer Price Index, and the Index of Industrial Production, are being updated with new base years to reflect India’s evolving economy, he noted.
Addressing historical challenges like outdated datasets and fragmented architecture, Mishra lauded Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI)’s comprehensive reforms from 2020 to 2025, which saw the acceptance of 216 expert recommendations implemented via modern methodologies like Computer-Assisted Personal Interviewing (CAPI) and digital platforms including e-Sankhyiki, GoIStats, PAIMANA, and e-SAKSHI.
He congratulated MoSPI on releasing its Vision Document 2026–31, the Sustainable Development Goals Progress Report, and the first city-level estimates of labor markets and informal enterprises, while also felicitating Professor Arup Bose on receiving the Sukhatme National Award.