DATA

Data is the plural of datum, which means facts or information. We should know data about various things to be effective and happy in our life or profession. The quality and quantity of data collected and utilized largely depends on who, where, why, when and how one did it. Government agencies, private firms, individuals, regulatory bodies and voluntary organizations regularly need a lot of data about the status of their subjects, human resources, domestic expenditure, statutory compliance and social service.

In the modern age, many entrepreneurs and businessman have been collecting crucial data through different online and offline sources like Google and Facebook, physical visits, filling online data forms, third party enquiry and so on. Businesses may grow or collapse just based on data provided by others. Numbers can thrill or kill us.

To collect, store and disseminate data in a reliable manner, one needs to have the following qualities.

1. Complete/partial knowledge about the nature, volume and importance of data to be collected and utilized.

2. Reliable tools ant technology to properly store and retrieve data minding short and long term needs.

In India, almost everybody suffers a number of times because of the mistakes and blunders committed by those collecting, processing, feeding and maintaining data of various human and other resources. We can consider government employees and agents representing them first-rate criminals in this regard because they maintain our data in such poor and unreliable manner. Can we imagine anybody in India who never got bothered with any kind of issue related to wrong entry of data? Aadhaar, voter identity card, ration card, bank passbook, revenue documents, legal correspondence, PF accounts, driving license are just a few examples. They feed our data wrongly. They issue us identity proofs with errors and blunders. They refuse to offer us our desired service, when we produce these documents issued by them, saying that there are errors in them. We, the people of India, have been becoming the ultimate victims of these wrong data entries. It mostly occurs due to the following reasons:

1. Nasty rogues and scoundrels entering the systems of public governance and defense services through reservation system, lobbying, corrupt practices and sympathy job offers.

2. Government employees without reliable language and typing skills in almost every department.

3. Negligence while feeding data because there are no punishments for those entering data wrongly.

4. Wrong and useless tools and systems being used to feed, update and maintain data online and offline.

5. The carelessness of central, state and local governments towards data of various stakeholders.

As far as private companies and agencies are concerned, wrong data entry can happen and lead to the following problems:

1. Most of the companies in India maintain two kinds of documents; one is to show to the folks of regulatory authorities and one is for their internal and confidential use.

2. Every regulatory authority knows about the corrupt practices of firms in private sector in India. They take bribes hugely from the managements and allow them to show records according to their choice.

3. Every financial year, hundreds of companies in India amass millions of rupees through data manipulation techniques and procedures. This is the main source of generation of huge black money.

4. Most of the government authorities have close ties with those in the private sector. So, even if extraordinary measures, policies, procedures and programs are introduced by any government, they cannot be successfully implemented at ground level. Both manipulate data to the most possible extent.

5. All of us suffer immensely when we cannot do something important in time due to wrong data entry.  

Status of Data

Though most of us are concerned about the accuracy of data we have, in fact, we just neglect it.

1. We cannot utilize all kinds of data we have.

2. We can’t ascertain the accuracy of data unless it is something which we can feel and assess physically.

3. Many times collection and retention of data is just a formality to governments. They don’t take decisions based on data collected by subject experts. Data sleeps on papers and in disks for decades.

4. Most of the authorities in public and private sector are experts in data manipulation.

5. The most difficult aspect of data entry is with digits but not with letters and other particulars.

7. Processing data became very fast and reliable with computers and super computers.

8. Many superiors take the compiled and finalized data by their subordinates for granted to sign.

9. Data processing requires a lot of patience, empathy and vision on part of those handling it.

10. Many depend on data to take major financial or other decisions in their lives or professions.

11. The high the volume of data collected, the low its accuracy and dependability to all of us.

12. The modern world is depending largely on quite unreliable data knowingly.

13. The data of time, occurrences and phenomena changes so rapidly that we can’t capture it well.

14. Wrong data entry often leads to psychological problems and unbelievable financial loss.

15. Data presented by scientists and researchers of highest order often looks quite unreliable to us.

16. Those that are very cautious about any data generally maintain great discipline in their lives.

17. Never depend on data collected by governments and voluntary organizations. They may be lies.

18. Many spend huge time on collection of data but not on optimum utilization of that data.

19. Hackers like data of others a lot. They often wish to scare others based on data they collected.

20. Females share data very rarely in comparison to males, in life or profession.