IndiaSpend looked at 35 parliamentary questions on health, education, labour, environment, agriculture, finance, gender and law and justice, between 2015 and 2023, for which the government responded that they had no data. The most common reason, in 17 of the 35 questions, for not providing data was “no such data is maintained”, we found.
https://thewire.in/government/10-issues-for-which-the-government-did-not-provide-data-in-parliament
“What’s concerning is the government’s frequent dismissal of crucial information and data requests on the grounds that relevant data is not maintained. We’ve also observed instances where certain data sets, like the household consumption expenditure survey, were suppressed,” says Anjali Bhardwaj, a co-convenor of the National Campaign for People’s Right to Information.
“In essence, this implies that citizens’ right to information becomes meaningless. Without data, there’s no accountability, rendering citizens unable to hold the government accountable. It’s crucial for governments to collect and maintain data as it’s the foundation for crafting effective policies, schemes, and laws in the public interest. Without access to this data, citizens are deprived of their right to information and cannot hold the government accountable for its actions or lack thereof. Therefore, the failure to maintain data is a significant concern in any country” says Bhardwaj.
01/06/2024