National Statistics Day 2020: Important date, History, Purpose and Special quotes
National Statistics Day 2020: National Statistics Day is celebrated on June 29 all over India with an aim to raise awareness in the public about the importance of statistics that helps in shaping and forming policies. Get the information about the history, purpose of celebrating National Statistics Day, and special quotes in this article.
Updated: Jun 11, 2020 14:03 IST
National Statistics Day 2020
National Statistics Day is celebrated on June 29 on the birth anniversary of Professor Prasanta Chandra Mahalanobis, a renowned statistician. The National Statistics Day focusses to create awareness among youth about the role of statistics in socio-economic planning and policy formulation. Each year is celebrated with one important national theme and based on the theme events and discussions are held to improvise the selected area. On this day, the nation pays homage to Professor Mahalanobis.
What is the history of National Statistics Day?
The National Statistics Day was first celebrated on 29th June 2007. The Government of India decided to celebrate the outstanding contribution made by Late Professor Prasanta Chandra Mahalanobis in the field of economic planning and statistical development and hence mark his birth anniversary as ‘National Statistics Day’
Who is Professor Prasanta Chandra Mahalanobis?
Professor Prasanta Chandra Mahalanobis is known as the father of Indian Statistics. He was born on 29 June 1893, an Indian statistician and scientist. He devised a measure of comparison between two data sets that are now known as the Mahalanobis distance. His contribution to large-scale surveys is huge. He was a pioneer in anthropometry studies and in pilot surveys. He was the member of the planning commission(1956-61) and he gave two-sector Input-output model for the Second Five Year Plan which later became known as the Nehru-Mahalanobis model
He founded Indian Statistical Institute (ISI) in December 1931 in Kolkata. He was honoured with many prestigious awards by India as well as foreign countries. Those are Padma Vibhushan (1968), Weldon Memorial Prize from the University of Oxford (1944), Fellow of the Royal Society, London(1945)
How is the National Statistics Day celebrated?
National Statistics Day is celebrated by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) by selecting the current national theme for the development of specific areas in statistics. A series of events, seminars, and competitions are held to feature the statistics at national level.
What is the theme of National Statistics Day 2019?
Every year, the theme for the day is selected based on the current national importance. The theme for the day will be selected for focused discussions and efforts throughout the particular year to bring about improvements in the selected area. The theme of National Statistics Day 2019 was “Sustainable Development Goals”. The theme was chosen to fill the data gaps and to improve the quality of Sustainable Development Goals.
Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI):
Established on: 15 October 1999
Minister responsible: Rao Inderjit Singh, MoS (Independent Charge)
MoSPI has 2 wings:
Department of Statistics
Department of Programme Implementation
MoSPI was formed after the merger of the Department of Statistics and the Department of Programme Implementation. The main objective of the Ministry is to develop the statistical system and maintain norms & standards in the field of statistics. It develops concepts & definitions, processing of data, the methodology of data collection, and dissemination of results. MoSPI is concerned with the quality & coverage area of statistics in the country.
Statistics Quotes
“A research journal serves that narrow borderland which separates the known from the unknown” - Prasanta Mahalanobis
“The history of the word sankhyā shows the intimate connection which has existed for more than 3000 years in the Indian mind between ‘adequate knowledge’ and ‘number.’ As we interpret it, the fundamental aim of statistics is to give determinate and adequate knowledge of reality with the help of numbers and numerical analysis. The ancient Indian word Sankhyā embodies the same idea, and this is why we have chosen this name for the Indian Journal of Statistics.” - Prasanta Mahalanobis
"Statistics is the grammar of science"- Karl Pearson
"We must be careful not to confuse data with the abstractions we use to analyze them"- William James
"Natural selection is a mechanism for generating an exceedingly high degree of improbability" - R. A. Fisher
National Statistics Day - FAQ
Prasanta Chandra Mahalanobis is known as the architect of the planning process of Indian Statistical Science and he is the founder of the Indian Statistical Institute (ISI).
The National Statistics Day is celebrated on the birth anniversary of Professor Prasanta Chandra Mahalanobis for his invaluable contribution in the National Statistical System. On this day a series of events have been conducted across the country.
Statistics is a branch of applied mathematics dealing with data collection, organization, analysis, interpretation, and presentation.
There are two main branches of statistics: descriptive statistics and inferential statistics. Both of these types are used in the scientific analysis of data.
Statistics are of utmost importance in everyday life. Statistics are the method of conducting a study about a particular area by collecting, organizing, interpreting, and finally getting appropriate data.
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