Base year revision aimed at sharper data, AI adoption: MoSPI Secretary Garg
Talking to ANI, Garg said these indicators are critical inputs for institutions predicting future economic growth as the government continues to publish actual growth rates for current and previous years.
“Updating base years is extremely important as the structure of the economy changes over time, new data sources emerge and data collection methodologies evolve,” he said.
“The rapid digitalization of the economy has significantly changed economic structures, especially with the expansion of digital sectors. The introduction of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) and the availability of new digital data sources have further transformed the statistical landscape,” he said.
Garg said the base year revision will enable policymakers and decision-makers to rely on more accurate and up-to-date data. “This update gives a much more accurate and robust picture of the economy, which can be used effectively by policymakers going forward,” he said.
Garg also underlined the increasing importance of updated and harmonized data in the context of artificial intelligence and machine learning. “Data is the essential raw material for artificial intelligence and machine learning. Therefore, it is important to harmonize data so that it can be used effectively by AI systems,” he said.
Garg added that internally, MoSPI is already using AI to improve the accuracy of data counting and speed up decision-making processes.
