Bhubaneswar: The Directorate of Economics & Statistics (DE&S), under the Planning & Convergence Department, organised an internal consultative workshop in Bhubaneswar as a precursor to a proposed national-level summit on “Using Administrative Data for Governance: Harmonising Departmental Data at State Level.”
Held at the State Convention Centre, the workshop brought together senior officials, domain experts, and representatives from multiple line departments to deliberate on strengthening administrative data systems and improving inter-departmental data integration.
Addressing the inaugural session, Development Commissioner-cum-Additional Chief Secretary Deoranjan Kumar Singh emphasised the importance of data-driven governance in achieving sustainable development goals and enhancing administrative efficiency.
The programme featured a presentation by Dr. Pradeep Kumar Rout, Special Secretary in the Electronics & Information Technology Department and CEO of Odisha Computer Application Centre (OCAC), who highlighted the role of digital infrastructure and data platforms in enabling seamless data sharing and analytics across departments. He stressed the need to build a unified and dynamic data ecosystem leveraging technology.
Providing a contextual overview, DE&S Director Dr. B. B. Nanda underscored the growing role of administrative data in policymaking, monitoring, and service delivery, calling for greater standardisation, interoperability, and improved data quality across departments.
Technical sessions saw participation from key departments including Health & Family Welfare, Agriculture & Farmers’ Empowerment, Higher Education, Finance, Mission Shakti, Housing & Urban Development, and Skill Development & Technical Education. Departments presented their administrative datasets, use cases in planning and monitoring, and highlighted challenges related to data collection, quality assurance, and data sharing.
Discussions identified gaps in existing systems and stressed the need for capacity building, standardised protocols, institutional mechanisms for data integration, and real-time data availability supported by advanced analytics for better decision-making.
The workshop concluded with a synthesis session outlining key findings and a roadmap for future action. Officials said the outcomes would contribute to a comprehensive action plan for administrative data linkage and capacity strengthening in the state.
The initiative marks a step towards building an integrated and resilient statistical system, reinforcing Odisha’s push for transparent, inclusive, and evidence-based governance.
