Food security calls at risk? Stats ministry flags serious gaps in agri data collection
A report from India's statistics ministry highlights significant failures in the national agriculture data collection system, specifically regarding crop enumeration inspections known as 'girdawari'. Outdated village maps and incomplete field data are hindering the government's ability to make informed decisions on food security and inflation control.
Why it matters
Inaccurate agricultural data poses a direct threat to India's food security, as policymakers rely on these statistics to manage export bans and emergency buffer stocks.
NEW DELHI: With deficit monsoon causing worry among policymakers over kharif sowing, the latest report by the statistics ministry has revealed severe gaps in the agriculture data collection system tracking crop acreage and food production.The grassroots field data is used by Commission for Agriculture Costs and Prices (CACP) to calculate production costs and shape national advance estimates, which govt uses to decide critical food security interventions, such as imposing export bans, adjusting import duties or releasing emergency buffer stocks to curb inflation.At the national level, the report shows that "girdawari", which is the foundational block of crop statistics and refers to official crop enumeration inspections conducted by village revenue officers, was completed on time in less than half of the country.Instances of non-completion of "girdawari" in 2023-24 in Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Gujarat, Haryana, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Punjab, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal were "alarmingly high", resulting in timely…
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