NITI Aayog has released the third edition of its quarterly insights series of Future Front, titled, India’s Data Imperative: The Pivot Towards Quality. The report focuses on the critical need to enhance data quality to strengthen digital governance, build public trust and improve service delivery mechanisms across the country. The publication addresses persistent challenges caused by poor data quality in public systems and introduces two key tools to help tackle the issue: a Data-Quality Scorecard designed to assess and track essential data attributes and a Data-Quality Maturity Framework that enables self-assessment and development of actionable roadmaps for data improvement. During the launch of the report, senior officials, including B V R Subrahmanyam, the CEO of NITI Aayog; Saurabh Garg, the secretary of the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI); and Debjani Ghosh, a distinguished fellow of the NITI Aayog; emphasised the importance of establishing strong data foundations to support India’s evolving digital ecosystem. The event saw participation from senior officials, experts and NITI Aayog staff, who agreed that quality data was vital for effective governance and a digitally-empowered India. The report aims to guide policymakers and institutions in aligning data systems with global standards for better decision-making.