Govt celebrates June 29 as Statistics Day; heard of Mahalanobis Distance?

Mahalanobis (right) with Pandit Nehru

TODAY, the government is paying tribute to the technocrat who undertook surveys in pre-indepndence era on topics such as consumer expenditure, tea-drinking habits, public opinion, crop acreage and plant disease. Heard of Prasanta Chandra Mahalanobis, the academic-cum-bureuacrat who taught India the significance of data and survey. In fact, the government of India has...
designated June 29 every year, coinciding with the birth anniversary of  Mahalanobis as the Statistics Day in the category of special day to be celebrated at the national level. The objective of this Day, as articulated by the government circulars, is to create public awareness, specially the younger generation for drawing inspirations from late Prof Mahalanobis about the role of statistics in socio-economic planning and policy formulation. This special day has been celebrated since 2007. This year, the theme for the Statistics Day is “Labour and Employment Statistics”.
Mahalanobis, who was instrumental in setting up Indian Statistical Institute (ISI) is known for introduction of the concept of pilot surveys and advocated the usefulness of sampling methods, according to a number of literature available on him. “Harold Hotelling wrote: 'No technique of random sample has, so far as I can find, been developed in the United States or elsewhere, which can compare in accuracy with that described by Professor Mahalanobis' and Sir R. A. Fisher commented that 'The ISI (Indian Statistical Institute) has taken the lead in the original development of the technique of sample surveys, the most potent fact finding process available to the administration,” according to Wikipedia.
Interested in maths and stats? Want to know about Mahalanobis Distance, an unit-less measure introduced by Prof Mahalanobis? Then click HERE

Action and Appointments
a) Pradeep Kumar Sinha, a 1977 batch UP cadre IAS and secretary, shipping has been appointed as secretary, ministry of power in place of P Uma Shanker, a 1976 batch UP cadre IAS.
b) Ms Gauri Kumar, a 1979 batch Gujarat cadre IAS and special secretary in the ministry of mines has been appointed as secretary, border management, in the ministry of home affairs in place of 1978 batch Manipur-Tripura cadre IAS AK Mangotra.
c) Syamal Kumar Sarkar, a 1979 batch West Bengal cadre IAS, currently secretary in the ministry of water resources has been appointed as secretary in the department of personnel and training (DoPT) in place of PK Misra, a 1976 batch UP cadre IAS.
d) Alok Rawat, a 1977 batch Sikkim cadre IAS and secretary (coordination and public grievances), in the cabinet secretariat, has been appointed as secretary in the ministry of water resources.
e) Vishwapati Trivedi, a 1977 batch MP cadre IAS and chairman of Inland Waterways Authority of India, has been appointed as secretary, ministry of shipping.
f) Bimal Julka, a 1979 batch MP cadre IAS and special secretary in ministry of external affairs is appointed as secretary in ministry of Information and Broadcasting.