Hyderabad: The National Statistics Office (NSO) under the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI), in collaboration with the Indian School of Business (ISB), organised a Data Users Conference on Tuesday.
The conference aimed to deepen the interaction between data producers and users by discussing two newly released surveys—the Annual Survey of Unincorporated Sector Enterprises (ASUSE) 2023–24 and the Forward-Looking Survey on Private Sector Capital Expenditure (CAPEX) Investment Intentions.
The event attracted over 200 delegates, including researchers, academicians, economists, representatives from industrial associations and trade bodies, policymakers, international organisation representatives, enterprise representatives, and esteemed institutions from academia and the media. Domain experts and members of the National Statistical Commission (NSC) were also present.
The conference was chaired by Dr Saurabh Garg, Secretary of MoSPI, who emphasised the Ministry’s core vision of “Data for Development.” He highlighted MoSPI’s role as the largest primary data collector in India, and potentially the world, with survey sample sizes ranging from one to five lakh units.
He pointed out several innovations, including the monthly release of the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) for both rural and urban areas and the forward-looking CAPEX Investment Intentions Survey, which provides insights into future private sector investment trends.
Delivering the keynote address, Dr V Anantha Nageswaran, Chief Economic Advisor (CEA), Government of India, commended MoSPI for its commitment to enhancing data granularity. He asserted that a strong conviction for policy reform will be sustained by detailed data insights.
He emphasised the importance of macroeconomic indicators based on the recently released reports on the ASUSE and CAPEX investment surveys.
Prof. Madan M Pillutla, Dean of the Indian School of Business (ISB), expressed gratitude to MoSPI for their collaboration and emphasized the importance of such data user conferences. He discussed the significance of data collection and the tradition of regularity and reliability that has been upheld. His address also stressed the importance of research, data, capacity building, and cross-validation.
Geeta Singh Rathore, Director General (NSS), MoSPI, elaborated on the significance of the data user conference for bridging the gap between data users and data. She briefly highlighted the importance and application of ASUSE and CAPEX data.
