What is in a number?

The system of releasing numerous GDP growth estimates over three years calls for an overhaul. Budget making will also benefit as a result

The National Statistical Office provides as many as six iterations of its estimates of the annual size of the Indian economy for any single year. These numbers are released over a period of 36 months. A comparison between the first and final iterations of the gross domestic product (GDP) number for the same year brings out significant variations. In some years, the variation reflects an overestimation made in the first print, while in others, there is an underestimation.
 

For instance, real growth in India’s GDP in 2016-17 was 7.1 per cent, according to the first advance estimate (FAE). But the