R.B. Barman, who recently took charge as Chairman of the National Statistical Commission (NSC), is expected by economists to prioritise the resolution of questions over the government’s new gross domestic product (GDP) series.
Mr. Barman, who was an executive director at the RBI, joins at a time when doubts have been raised on GDP numbers based on the new series. The new method helped lift GDP growth to 7.3 per cent in fiscal 2015 compared with 5.5 per cent under the old series. RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan is among those who have queried the new methodology. “The selection of R.B. Barman as the Chairman of NSC is very good for improving the robustness of Indian statistical databases, in view of his rich background in both theory and practice,” said Rupa Rege Nitsure, group chief economist, L&T Finance Holdings. “As a central banker, he was closely associated with many projects that involved creation and improvisation of critical time series databases.”
The selection of R.B. Barman as Chairman of NSC is good for improving the robustness of Indian statistical databases
Rupa Rege Nitsure
Group chief economist, L&T Finance Holdings
