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Informist, Friday, Mar. 21, 2025

NEW DELHI – The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation is functioning far below its full strength, which affects the quality of data it collects, the ministry has informed the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance.

"On being asked to specify the extent of impediments suffered by the Division (Field Operation Division) due to manpower shortage, the Ministry stated that the Shortage of manpower in FOD in respect of collection and scrutiny of the data affects the quality of the data. However, the same is being addressed through engaging contractual manpower and training them," the standing committee on the statistics ministry's demand for grants for 2025-26 (Apr-Mar) said in a report. The report was laid in Parliament on Wednesday.

As per the data in the report, while the sanctioned strength of the Indian Statistical Service is 727, there were as many as 87 vacancies--or 11% of the number--as at the end of December. The numbers were much worse for the Subordinate Statistical Service, which was created a couple of decades ago as a cadre of qualified personnel with expertise in statistics to help build key statistical database to assist in planning, policy formulation, and decision making by the government, whose officers are posted in various parts of the central government.

As on Jan. 1, the total sanctioned strength of the Subordinate Statistical Service was 4,385. But there were as many as 1,043--or 24%--vacancies. The missing staff were primarily in the Junior Statistical Officer grade of the cadre, where 42% of the sanctioned strength of 2,402 was vacant at the start of 2025. Vacancies in the Senior Statistical Officer grade were a minor 2%.

Overall, the combined sanctioned strength of the Indian Statistical Service and the Subordinate Statistical Service was 5,199, with 22% of the positions unfilled.

In a written reply to the Standing Committee on Finance, the statistics ministry said officers of the Subordinate Statistical Service "form the foundation of the statistical system of the country" with more than 80% of these officers deployed in the ministry's Field Operation Division. The Field Operation Division is responsible for the collection of primary data for the surveys undertaken by the statistics ministry.

Worryingly, the attrition rate at the Junior Statistical Officer level is an eye-wateringly high 44%, the ministry told the standing committee, with a large number of newly-recruited officers leaving due to "other better options". This has led to the percentage of vacancies in the Field Operation Division at the Subordinate Statistical Service level rising to 27% in 2025 from 20% in 2023.

"However, MoSPI is regularly referring the vacancy position to Staff Selection Commission for recruitment of JSOs. The shortage of manpower in FOD is addressed by engaging contractual staff through outsourcing agencies and providing them with proper training before deploying them for survey work," the ministry said in a written response to the committee, adding that the minimum education qualification for contractual field staff is graduation level.  End

Reported by Siddharth Upasani

Edited by Avishek Dutta

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