The Making of Indian Statistics
4 hours ago
- #economic planning
- #statistical history
- #data governance
- Prasanta Chandra Mahalanobis founded the journal Sankhyā in 1933, aiming to provide determinate knowledge of reality through numbers, embodying the Sanskrit word for 'number' and 'adequate knowledge'.
- The Indian Statistical Institute (ISI), established by Mahalanobis, developed innovative statistical methods like stratified random sampling and interpenetrating subsamples to replace guesswork with precise estimates for India's developmental challenges.
- Mahalanobis created the Mahalanobis Distance (D²), a statistical measure for multivariate distance, and attracted top talent like R.C. Bose and C.R. Rao, fostering a flexible, non-hierarchical research environment.
- The ISI operated as a hybrid institution—outside government but collaborating with it—enabling both theoretical research and applied work, such as crop estimation and the National Sample Survey (NSS) launched in 1950.
- Mahalanobis became a key advisor to Nehru, influencing India's economic planning, notably the Second Five-Year Plan based on the Feldman-Mahalanobis model, which emphasized heavy industry but faced criticism for economic imbalances.
- The NSS pioneered large-scale probability sampling in India, providing crucial data on consumption, poverty, and employment, forming the basis for poverty lines and planning, yet later faced issues like data suppression and methodological changes.
- Due to Cold War restrictions, India built its first electronic computer from wartime surplus, showcasing improvisation, but the ISI's decline began after Nehru's death, losing political patronage and evolving into a bureaucratic institution.
- Recent reforms, such as clearing survey backlogs and launching AI-compatible data protocols, aim to revive India's statistical system, but reliance on individual capability over institutional processes remains a challenge for longevity.