The Ministry of Statistics & Programme Implementation (MoSPI) celebrated the 19th Statistics Day on June 29, 2025, to commemorate the 132nd birth anniversary of Professor P.C. Mahalanobis, a pioneer of India’s statistical system and economic planning.
This year’s celebration, held at Dr. Ambedkar International Centre, New Delhi, was themed “75 Years of National Sample Survey (NSS)”. It underscored the contribution of the NSS in supporting data-driven governance since its inception in 1950.
Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Rao Inderjit Singh applauded MoSPI’s focus on transparency, real-time data systems, and inclusive policy formulation. He emphasized the importance of reforms like updated sampling, international harmonization, and digital transformation to ensure robust statistical practices.
Secretary Dr. Saurabh Garg highlighted MoSPI’s digital initiatives such as the eSankhyiki portal with over 135 million records and the launch of a new mobile app, GoIStat. This app provides access to official statistics on-the-go, fulfilling the website–portal–mobile app ecosystem for public data dissemination.
Dr. Rajeeva Laxman Karandikar, Chairman of the National Statistical Commission (NSC), advocated for statistical tools in areas like exam score normalization and online voting validation to strengthen governance trust.
On the occasion, several major publications were released, including the:
- Sustainable Development Goals National Indicator Framework Progress Report 2025
- Data Snapshot on SDG Progress Report
- NSS Report on Nutritional Intake in India (2022–23 & 2023–24)
One of the event’s highlights was the presentation of the Prof. C.R. Rao National Award for Statistics 2025 to Dr. Prajamitra Bhuyan of IIM Calcutta for his notable contributions to the field. Winners of a national Data Visualization Hackathon were also felicitated.
The technical session featured a documentary on NSS and a panel discussion led by Dr. Shamika Ravi from the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister. Panelists discussed the transformative impact of frontier technologies on official statistics, including contributions from experts at the National Institute of Immunology, Aditya Birla Group, and Wadhwani Centre.
About 700 participants including dignitaries from ministries, academia, and international agencies took part in the celebrations, making it a fitting tribute to Prof. Mahalanobis and India’s data journey toward Viksit Bharat.
Source: Press Information Bureau
