India
Statistical System, Data and Technology Must Drive India’s 2047 Vision, Says PM’s Principal Secretary
Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister PK Mishra said on Tuesday that a robust statistical framework is essential for evidence‑based policymaking and for achieving the Viksit Bharat vision by 2047. He made the remarks while inaugurating the Conference of State Planning, Finance and IT Secretaries in New Delhi, an event organised by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI). According to a MoSPI statement, Mishra emphasised the importance of credible statistics, data harmonisation and technology‑enabled governance. He added that statistics, data, technology, planning and governance are increasingly interconnected elements of India’s development journey.
Mishra said a strong statistical system 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. He stressed the need to update methods used to measure economic activity so that India’s statistical framework keeps pace with the economy’s growing digitalisation, formalisation and interconnectedness.
Last month, Mishra told the 13th SBI Banking and Economics Conclave 2026 that the financial sector’s task is larger than financing next year’s growth; it is to finance the next generation of Indian enterprise. He said India’s ambition to become a leading global economy requires a shift in the financial system’s approach, from “accommodating growth to enabling growth”. He noted that banks alone cannot meet the financing requirements of a significantly larger and more advanced economy and called for stronger corporate bond and equity markets, a greater role for institutional investors and infrastructure funds.
Mishra also urged lenders to change how they evaluate creditworthiness, placing greater importance on business cash flows rather than collateral. He said technology can widen access to credit, with lenders using information from GST returns, bank statements, payment records, account aggregator data and digital lending infrastructure to assess businesses. “This is not an argument for lower standards of credit appraisal. It is an argument for better information and better credit appraisal,” he said. He added that financial institutions should increasingly judge businesses on their revenue‑generating capacity and growth prospects instead of relying mainly on assets held by their promoters. “If India is to move from manufacturing to design and innovation, our capital markets, our venture ecosystem and our banks must be equally willing to finance ideas and not merely factories,” he added.