Strong Statistical Systems Key to Achieving Viksit Bharat @ 2047

Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister, Dr. P. K. Mishra, today delivered the keynote address at the inaugural session of the Conference of State Planning, Finance and IT Secretaries, organised by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) in New Delhi.

Dr. Mishra said statistics, data, technology, planning and governance are increasingly interconnected elements of India’s development journey. A robust statistical system, he noted, must enable governments to measure development progress across States and districts, assess policy outcomes, identify gaps and ensure that public resources deliver the intended results. “What cannot be measured cannot be managed effectively. And what cannot be managed effectively cannot be transformed sustainably,” he observed.

Highlighting the need to modernise economic measurement, Dr. Mishra said India’s statistical systems must evolve alongside an economy that is increasingly digital, formalised and interconnected.

Underscoring the importance of State Statistical Systems, Dr. Mishra said India’s development story is fundamentally a story of its States, where policies are implemented, economic activity takes place and citizens experience development outcomes.

Dr. Mishra said artificial intelligence, machine learning, geospatial systems, satellite imagery and advanced analytics offer significant opportunities to improve the timeliness, accuracy and usefulness of official statistics.

Dr. Mishra described statistics as an important instrument of cooperative federalism, enabling States and the Centre to compare outcomes, identify best practices and learn from regional differences.

Concluding, Dr. Mishra called for a collective national effort involving MoSPI, State Statistical Offices, Finance, Planning and IT Departments, NITI Aayog, academic institutions and other stakeholders. He said India needs a statistical architecture that is trusted, transparent, technology-enabled, interoperable and policy-relevant. Such a system, he added, would not merely measure India’s transformation but also help guide and accelerate it towards Viksit Bharat @ 2047. (UPDATED ON 13TH OCTOBER 2026)