the loss of information due to removal of controls. in fact, many analysts hold the view that the financial crisis that hit the asian economies about ten years ago was partly occasioned by inadequate data on the activities of the banking system. in highly deregulated regimes, sometimes, conducting a survey is the only option available for obtaining the data necessary for policy making. however, we do recognise that a survey has to be properly designed to serve the objectives. firstly, quality of data derived from surveys depends on the methodology and standards used for these surveys. an international conference of this type is useful for sharing of country experiences on these issues and, hopefully, you will benefit by learning from varied experiences in making judgments on the complex issues involved. secondly, in a country like india with significant diversity, the matching of survey – design with target population is important. the diversity encompasses several languages, different customs and culture, and variation in levels of literacy and understanding. no doubt, respondents vary across objectives of surveys. thirdly, even a perfectly prepared questionnaire is of no use if large number of people fail to complete it. thus, the main goal of any survey implementation plan should be to obtain a high response rate. as far as our experience with survey responses is concerned, we do not encounter problems with the regulated entities like banks from whom the response is generally more than 90 per cent in most of the surveys conducted whereas the response rate drops significantly when the survey is conducted amongst non - regulated entities. however, the response of households to the inflation expectations survey is almost 100 per cent. even after increasing the sample size considerably, we continue to get good response, though it is difficult to ascertain the reliability of responses from different categories of households, in view of the varying degrees of awareness. in any case, the erroneous responses in this sector are likely to be higher than in the case of banks and other financial institutions, where the percentage of erroneous responses is normally remaining in single digit. fourthly, survey data are subject to well - known types of bias. for example, since respondents know that they are being studied, and have at least some idea why, they may change their answers, either consciously or unconsciously, to show themselves in a better light or to conform to the expectations of those who are studying them. this is fairly common in inflation expectation survey. fifthly, from the perspective of policy - making, the primary purpose of conducting a survey is to produce data that will help

a couple of weeks ago ( 12th june 2007 ) in his opening address at the workshop on the compilation of banking statistics in kenya. first, there are varied users of the banking data such as government, central bank, market participants, researchers, etc. the data and analysis, therefore, have to be user friendly. second, he stated that the dynamic nature of our economies necessitates our becoming dynamic in our approach to data compilation. for my part, i would like to add, by way of concluding remarks, that in data or surveys, there should be consistency with global standards but the scheme has to be tailored to meet the domestic interests and needs. no doubt, we have to learn from each others ’ experience but need to adapt to the country - specific context. let me conclude by wishing you all the best, and a safe journey with pleasant memories of a productive stay in pune. thank you.