Give info to surveyors or cough up penalty

BANGALORE: When government surveyors pay a visit home to collect information, people shall no longer say they are busy or declare unwillingness to furnish information.This will become possible when the Centre notifies the Collection of Statistics Act, 2008. The soon-to-be-notified Act says one can be penalised for refusing to furnish information.But surveyors from the National Sample Survey Organisation (NSSO) were told not to rely on such methods but to be patient and use persuasion to collect information.Those involved in data collection from across the state were in Bangalore to attend a four-day training session to conduct a yearlong survey on consumer expenditure, employment and unemployment, and details regarding use of AYUSH facilities in villages. This survey is expected to start on July 1, 2011.Inaugurating the session, Deputy Director General, South Zone, K P Unnikrishnan said it had become increasingly difficult to conduct surveys as people were reluctant to part with information.He added that people collecting the information should remember that the information would be used by government agencies to set parameters in the country and to practically define terms such as poverty line.Although surveys on different subjects are held every year on different subjects, NSSO is taking up the project on consumer expenditure on the heels of the country recovering from global recession.Deputy Director General, Bangalore Regional Office Ahamed Ayub B and Deputy Director General, Data Processing Centre, Vijaykumar were present.