Ministry plans data analysis system for companies

To strengthen its surveillance efforts, the Corporate Affairs Ministry has plans to establish a data analysis and dissemination system for companies registered in the country.

Such a plan, also aimed at bringing in more transparency, comes against the backdrop of instances of corporate frauds and misappropriation of money through registered companies coming to the light.

The Ministry has plans to have a “data analysis and dissemination system”, which would primarily focus on analysing the data provided by companies, according to sources.

The system would also help in having a better understanding about various aspects of companies, they added.

“We have all the necessary data. The idea is to collate them based on certain criteria, so that everyone can have a good picture about companies... The system might also help in spotting the discrepancies in data (provided by) companies,” according to one of the sources.

Once data is collated, based on a set of criteria, such information could even be put on the Ministry’s website for public use, the sources said. The plan is at an initial stage, they added.

Many investigations into a number of corporate frauds in the past have shown that some of them could have been detected at a much earlier stage by a stronger oversight mechanism.

In a recent interview, the Corporate Affairs Minister, Sachin Pilot had said that his Ministry would be setting up a new intelligence unit that would delve into ‘data mining’ from all possible sources to detect any wrongdoings by the companies and their promoters at the earliest possible stage.

“In the Ministry, we are setting up an intelligence unit. It is at a nascent stage. We would be putting technical people with lot of experience and expertise on the job and these would be the people who can mine the data,” he had said.

The idea is to have a set of people to do the data mining, collection and checking of records that is available on various platforms, and then link them with the inputs from investigating agencies, the Minister had said.

Pilot had also added that information needed to detect possible corporate frauds at an early stage is generally available on one or the other platform, and what is actually needed is that “we have to have the sense to mine it”.

The Corporate Affairs Ministry is mainly concerned with administration of the Companies Act, 1956 and other rules to ensure that functioning of the corporate sector is in accordance with law.

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