Dhaka, July 17 -- Political interventions and lack of independence in the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) has created a muddle on its data and statistics, discussants at a taskforce meeting said on Wednesday.

Besides, the intervention from the line ministry and other public agencies and bureaucrats had also affected the strength and capability of the specialised statistical services, especially generation quality data, according to them.

The government-formed "Taskforce for the actionable recommendations to reform and strengthen the BBS" sat with media professionals, who are considered as important stakeholders of utilising the public data and statistics.

The meeting was presided over by the taskforce head Dr Hossain Zillur Rahma...