(07 November 2022) Government Data Roundup: CPI for Industrial Workers, 3rd Advance Estimates of Horticultural Crops, Payroll Reporting Among the Data Released Recently.

The fifteenth edition of the fortnightly government data roundup covers the Third Advance Estimates of area and production of horticultural crops for the year 2021-22, Consumer Price Index for Industrial Workers for September 2022, Payroll Reporting in India – A Formal Employment Perspective for August 2022, Performance Grading Index (PGI) for States/UTs for 2020-21, among others.

The fifteenth edition of the fortnightly government data roundup covers the Third Advance Estimates of the area and production of horticultural crops for the year 2021-22, the Consumer Price Index for Industrial Workers for September 2022, Payroll Reporting in India – A Formal Employment Perspective for August 2022, Draft Master Directions – Information Technology Governance, Risk, Controls and Assurance Practices by RBI, Twenty Point Programme Progress Report April 2022- Jun 2022, 50 years’ journey of Basic Statistical Returns by RBI, Performance Grading Index (PGI) for States/UTs for 2020-21 and Responsible AI report by NITI Aayog.

Some other quick highlights of this fortnight are as below:

• Draft Common Income Tax Return Form is made available by the Central Board of Direct Taxes for public consultation. In line with global best practises, it suggests combining all current income tax returns—aside from ITR-7—to create a single, unified ITR. ITR-1 and ITR-4 will stay in place, nevertheless. Taxpayers will then have the choice to file their returns at their convenience in either the current forms (ITR-1 or ITR-4) or the proposed common ITR.
• The National Curriculum Framework for Foundational Stage was introduced by Dharmendra Pradhan, Union Minister of Education, Skill Development, and Entrepreneurship. The NCF has an institutional focus, the importance of the home environment cannot be overemphasized – including family, extended family, neighbours, and others in the close community – all of whom have a very significant impact on the child, particularly in this age cohort of 3-8 years. 
• The government notified Amendments to the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules 2021. The uploading of content that actively spreads false information or information that is obviously incorrect, or misleading will no longer be permitted, placing a significant duty on intermediaries. The guidelines have also made it clear that the intermediary must uphold the rights guaranteed to Indian citizens by Articles 14, 19, and 21 of the Indian Constitution.

Brief about the report/data:

The Consumer Price Index for Industrial Workers is compiled each month by the Labour Bureau, an associated office of the Ministry of Labour & Employment, using retail prices gathered from 317 markets dispersed across 88 industrially significant centres in the country. On the last working day of the next month, the index—which is compiled for 88 centres & All-India—is released. This press release contains the index for September 2022.

Key Highlights:

• For September 2022, the All-India CPI-IW climbed by 1.1 points to 131.3. Comparing it to the gain of 0.24 percent between the same months a year earlier, it climbed by 0.84 percent over the preceding month in terms of the percentage change.
• The Food & Beverages group exerted the most upward pressure on the current index, contributing 0.68 percentage points to the overall change.
• Inflation stood at 6.49 percent year over year for the month, up from 5.85 percent the month before and 4.40 percent in the same month a year before. 
• Similarly, food inflation was 7.76 percent, up from 6.46 percent in the previous month and 2.26 percent in the same month a year ago.

Brief about the report:

The advanced estimate of agriculture production presents a detailed estimation of the production of agricultural products in a financial year and its share in the GDP. The assessment of the production of different crops is based on the data received from States and validated with information available from other sources. This data is useful for deciding on budget allocation and gives an idea of the contribution of this sector to the GDP. 

Key Highlights:

• The estimated total horticulture production for the year 2021–2022 is 342.33 million tonnes, up roughly 7.73 million tonnes (or 2.3%) from the previous year (final).
• Vegetable production is expected to increase to 204.84 million tonnes from 200.45 million tonnes in 2020–21.
• Against a production of 102.48 million tonnes in 2020–21, 107.24 million tonnes of fruits are estimated to be produced this year.
• Production of onions is estimated to increase to 31.27 million tonnes from 26.64 million tonnes in 2020–21.
• The estimated production of potatoes is 53.39 million tonnes, down from 56.17 million tonnes in 2020–21.
• As opposed to 21.18 million tonnes in 2020–21, 20.33 million tonnes of tomatoes are expected to be produced in 2021-22.

Brief about the report:

The Ministry of Statistics & Programme Implementation started publishing this data in April 2018 covering the period from September 2017 onwards. Information on the number of subscribers under three major schemes- the Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF) Scheme, the Employees’ State Insurance (ESI) Scheme and the National Pension Scheme (NPS) has been provided. There could be some overlap in the subscription counts from different sources. As a result, the estimations from different sources do not add up. The data gives different perspectives on the level of employment in the formal sector in the country. However, it does not measure employment at a holistic level.

Key Highlights:

• Over 5.81 crore new subscribers joined the Employees Provident Fund (EPF) scheme between September 2017 and August 2022. About 9.86 lakh new subscribers joined the EPF scheme in August 2022, which is less than 11.19 lakh new subscribers in July 2022.
• Between September 2017 and July 2022, 7.22 crore new subscribers joined the Employees State Insurance Corporation scheme. The number of newly registered employees & paying contributions during the month of August 2022 was 14.62 lakh, down from 15.89 lakh in July 2022.
• Under the NPS Central Government, State Governments and Corporate schemes, 37.85 lakh new subscribers joined the scheme between September 2017 and August 2022.
• Payroll data analysis by gender reveals that in August 2022, there were 2.68 lakh net new female EPF subscribers, declining for the first time in the last three months. Similarly, under the ESI Scheme, the number of newly registered female employees & paying contributions during the month of August 2022 was 2.79 lakh, registering a decline for the first time from April 2022. 

Brief about the report:

The Basic Statistical Returns (BSR) system supported the expansion of the Indian banking system and financial inclusion policies over the course of the last 50 years (1972-2022), and the Reserve Bank organised the BSR@50 Conference on 28 October 2022, to discuss this role and consider the way forward. On this occasion, a commemorative volume featuring research papers utilising BSR data as well as the history of the BSR and bank branch statistics systems was published.

Key Highlights:

• Female participation as an employee (per 1000 of total employees) expanded in Scheduled Commercial Banks (SCBs) to 242 employees in March 2022 from 164 employees in March 2013.
• The proportion of surveyed females with age more than 15 years, who own accounts at financial institutions recorded robust expansion in the case of India by 51 percent during the period 2011-2021, among other BRICS nations, and stood at 77 percent in 2021 as compared to 26 percent in 2011.
• The merger of RRBs at the state level during 2018-19 was found to have a positive effect on their performance since the service area of the merged entity covered a larger pool of districts.
• Aspirational Districts (ADs) in the North-Eastern region and Western region have consistent credit utilisation over other regions in the country during the timeframe of the Aspirational Districts Program. It is also found that in the ADs in the southern region, bank lending exceeds their deposit mobilisation during the timeframe.
• Examination of the causal linkages of real credit cycles indicates that western and central India display lead properties vis-à-vis all-India credit cycle, while that in south India comes with a lag, and north India has a bidirectional linkage, while credit cycles of eastern and NE regions displayed no strong causal relationship.

Brief about the report:

The Reserve Bank of India under Section 35A of the Banking Regulation Act of 1949, Section 45L of the Reserve Bank of India Act of 1934, Section 11 of the Credit Information Companies (Regulation) Act of 2005, and all other provisions and laws that permit it to do so, issued Master Directions on Information Technology Governance, Risk, Controls, and Assurance Practices, which the Regulated Entities (REs) will be required to execute. These Directions incorporate consolidated and updated guidelines/instructions/ circulars on IT Governance, Risk, Controls, Assurance Practices and Business Continuity/ Disaster Recovery Management. Some of the key aspects are mentioned below.

Key Highlights:

• REs shall establish a Board-level IT Strategy Committee (ITSC) with a minimum of two directors as members. A minimum of one member should be highly experienced in leading and managing IT initiatives. The IT Strategy Committee shall meet at least on a quarterly basis.
• REs must set up a solid IT governance framework with the governance structures and procedures required to achieve their business and strategic goals.
• The Head of IT Operations must be a person with a senior enough position who is also technically proficient and experienced in IT-related matters. The usage of IT in the RE will be decided upon with significant input from the Head of IT Operations.
• REs shall have a ‘Change Management’ procedure for dealing with any changes in technology and processes to ensure that such changes take place in a controlled and reliable manner.
• REs should also have a documented data migration policy detailing the processes for data migration, keeping in mind the integrity of data and confidentiality.
• REs shall establish a robust IT Risk Management Framework, and they shall define metrics for system performance, recovery, and business resumption, for each IT system application. 

Brief about the report:

Twenty Point Programme was first initiated in 1975, and it underwent structural changes in 1982, 1986 and 2006. It is a combination of poverty alleviation programs, schemes for health and education, employment generation programs, and schemes impacting the environment and quality of life. This progress report of the Twenty Point Programme 2006 consists of two parts: Part-I contains an analysis of the overall performance, whereas Part II deals with item-wise performance. The report is compiled on the basis of data received from the Central Nodal Ministries and State Governments/UT Administrations. Presently, 14 parameters are taken for quarterly performance analysis.

Key Highlights:

• Around 66.83 lakh job cards were issued, generating 84.85 crore person days and Rs.17,459 crores were paid as wages under the MGNREGA.
• More than 9.56 lakh SHGs were promoted, while 1.13 lakh SHGs were provided Revolving Fund, and 38,556 SHGs were provided Community Investment Fund (CIF).
• More than 127 Lakh tonnes of food was distributed through Targeted Public Distribution System.
• Approximately 26.57 lakh houses were constructed under Pradhan Mantri Awaas Yojana- Grameen, and 26.58 lakh EWS/LIG houses were constructed in urban areas.
• 31.68 lakh institutional deliveries were done, and 6.25 lakh individual household latrines were constructed during this period.
• 4,923 kms length of the road was constructed under Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana, and more than 4 lakh Million Units of electricity was supplied during this period.
• 7076 ICDS blocks were operational, and 13.92 lakh Anganwadis were functional during the above period. Around 0.63 lakh poor families were assisted under the Seven Point Charter, and more than 7.62 Lakh SC students were assisted under Post matric scholarships. 

Brief about the report:

India, with over 14.9 lakh schools, 95 lakh teachers and nearly 26.5 crore students, has the largest school education ecosystem in the world. It is important to assess the performance of this huge system. The Performance Grading Index (PGI), which analyses state and local performance on a standard scale, is a relatively new index that aims to spur radical change in the area of schooling by providing insights into the status of school education in States & UTs. It intends to encourage States and UTs to implement multi-pronged interventions that will result in highly sought optimal educational outcomes, while also encouraging them to embrace best practises used by States with the best results.

Key Highlights:

• A total of 7 States and UTs, namely, Kerala, Punjab, Chandigarh, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Rajasthan, and Andhra Pradesh have attained Level II (score 901-950) in 2020-21 as compared to none till 2018-19 and 5 in 2019-20.
• Similarly, no state has performed below Level VII in 2020-21 whereas in 2017-18 there were 12 States/UTs who performed below Level VII showing remarkable improvement of States /UTs in the last 4 years.
• A total of 27 States and UTs have improved their total PGI score in 2020-21 as compared to 2019-20
• The maximum and minimum scores obtained by State in 2020-21 are 928 and 669 respectively. The deviation between the maximum and minimum scores obtained by States is 259 or 39 % of the minimum points, which reduced from 51% in 2017-18.
• The newly formed Union Territory Ladakh has made significant improvements in PGI from Level 8 to Level 4 in 2020-21 or improved its score by 299 points in 2020-21 as compared to 2019-20 resulting in biggest-ever improvement in a single year.

Brief about the report:

The National Strategy on Artificial Intelligence (NSAI), published in 2018 by NITI Aayog, included a roadmap for implementing AI in five public sectors in a way that is secure and provides advantages to all residents. The “AI for All” motto was created in the strategy paper to serve as the guiding standard for future AI design, development, and deployment in India.

As a follow-up to NSAI, stakeholder consultations on the suggested strategy for the responsible use of new technologies were launched in partnership with the World Economic Forum in 2019. The result was the publication of a two-part methodology paper outlining the principles for ethical artificial intelligence (AI) deployment in India as well as the enforcement methods for putting these principles into practise (RAI principles). Facial recognition technology (FRT) has been taken as the first use case for examining the RAI principles.

Key Highlights:

• FRT applications based on the use can be divided in two broad sectors – the non-security use cases, and the security uses of FRT. Examples of non-security uses of FRT range from international uses of FRT to provide greater ease of access to airport facilities, to educational systems using FRT to generate unique IDs to select college course options, while security uses of FRT typically include the use of FRT for general law and order considerations, like investigation, identification of missing persons, identifying persons of interest to the law enforcement among others.
• Design-based risks of FRT systems:
  • Inaccuracy due to technical factors
  • Inaccuracy due to bias caused by the underrepresentation
  • Inaccuracy due to glitches or perturbations
  • Security risks due to data breaches and unauthorised access
  • Accountability, legal liability, and grievance redressal
  • Opaque nature of FRT systems.
• Rights-based challenges to the use of FRT systems:
  • Puttaswamy on privacy and informational autonomy
  • Issues of informational autonomy
  • Threat to non-participants in the deployment of FRT systems
  • Legal thresholds applicable to FRT systems
  • Anonymity as a facet of privacy

Featured Image: Government Data Roundup