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Topics Covered

National Statistical Office (NSO) NSSO CSO National Statistical Commission Important Acts
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  1. 1. The Indian Statistical System
  2. 2. Vision and Mission of NSO
  3. 3. Central Statistics Office (CSO)
  4. 4. National Sample Survey Office (NSSO)
  5. 5. National Statistical Commission (NSC)
  6. 6. Important Statistical Acts
  7. 7. Real-life Impact of Official Statistics
  8. Key Take-aways

1. The Indian Statistical System

OVERVIEW

India has one of the world's largest official statistical systems. The apex body is the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI), under which the National Statistical Office (NSO) functions. The National Statistical Commission (NSC), set up in 2005, acts as an autonomous advisory body.

MoSPI NSO CSO NSSO National accounts, indices Large-scale sample surveys
Fig 5.1 — Organisational structure: NSO is the merger of CSO and NSSO (effective 2019)

2. Vision and Mission of NSO

VISION

"To establish a state-of-the-art statistical system that produces credible, reliable, and timely statistical information to support the country's planning, policy formulation, and decision-making processes."

MISSION

3. Central Statistics Office (CSO)

The CSO, established in 1951, is the central agency responsible for the development and coordination of statistical activities in India. After the 2019 reorganisation, the CSO became part of the NSO.

Roles and Responsibilities

  1. Compilation and release of National Accounts — GDP, GVA, NNP, per capita income.
  2. Compilation of Index of Industrial Production (IIP).
  3. Compilation of Consumer Price Index (CPI) — rural, urban and combined.
  4. Release of Annual Survey of Industries (ASI) results.
  5. Development of statistical standards and classifications (NIC, NCO).
  6. Coordination with state statistical agencies.
  7. Liaison with international agencies (UN, IMF, World Bank).

Important Publications

4. National Sample Survey Office (NSSO)

The NSSO, established in 1950 by P. C. Mahalanobis, is the nodal agency for large-scale sample surveys in India.

Roles and Responsibilities

  1. Conduct nation-wide household and enterprise surveys.
  2. Generate data on socio-economic, demographic, agricultural and industrial topics.
  3. Provide reliable estimates of employment, consumption, health and education.
  4. Develop sampling methodology for surveys.
  5. Train statistical personnel.

Key Periodic Surveys

SurveyFrequencyPurpose
Consumer Expenditure Survey (CES)Quinquennial (5 yrs)Household expenditure, poverty
Employment-Unemployment Survey (now PLFS)Annual (since 2017)Labour force participation, employment
Health SurveyQuinquennialHealth expenditure, morbidity
Education SurveyQuinquennialSchooling, literacy
Annual Survey of IndustriesAnnualManufacturing sector statistics

Important Activities

Publications

5. National Statistical Commission (NSC)

NEED

The Rangarajan Commission (2001) found that the Indian statistical system suffered from coordination problems, varying quality, and slow response to user needs. It recommended an autonomous, expert body to oversee the system. The NSC was set up by Resolution dated 1 June 2005.

Constitution of NSC

Role and Functions

  1. Identify core statistics of national importance and ensure their integrity.
  2. Lay down norms and standards for statistical concepts, definitions and classifications.
  3. Coordinate the statistical work of central ministries and states.
  4. Monitor and review quality, reliability, and timeliness of data.
  5. Promote dissemination and transparency of statistics.
  6. Advise the government on statistical matters and act as a clearing house.
  7. Review the operations of the NSO and recommend improvements.

6. Important Statistical Acts

ActYearPurpose
Collection of Statistics Act2008 (replacing 1953 Act)Provides legal authority to collect data from individuals/businesses; confidentiality provisions.
Census Act1948Authorises the decennial population census.
Registration of Births and Deaths Act1969Mandatory civil registration of vital events.
Right to Information Act2005Citizens' access to information including statistical data.

Key Provisions of the Collection of Statistics Act 2008

  1. Power to collect data for the planning, administration and policy purposes.
  2. Mandates a duty of accuracy on the part of respondents.
  3. Strict confidentiality — individual data cannot be used to identify a person/firm.
  4. Penalties for non-compliance.
  5. Authorises the central / state governments to direct the collection of statistics.

7. Real-life Impact of Official Statistics

EXAMPLE 1

The CPI compiled by CSO is used by RBI to set inflation targets and conduct monetary policy. A 1 % rise in CPI affects pensions, dearness allowance and bond yields nationwide.

EXAMPLE 2

The PLFS by NSSO provides quarterly urban unemployment rates. These figures inform schemes like MGNREGA expansion and skill-development missions.

Key Take-aways

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