Dr Debapriya Bhattacharya, Distinguished Fellow of the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD), on Thursday described national data as the "Fifth Pillar of the State" and called for the protection of a national eco-data system. "If we want to drive development of Bangladesh towards advancement, the existing lack of data, if this lacking cannot be mitigated, then the planning will not be right resulting in the non-up to the mark implementation,” he said. Dr Debapriya made the remarks while delivering the keynote speech at the Distinguished Lecture Series: “The State of Bangladesh Economy: What Is To Be Done?” at a city hotel. The Bay of Bengal Institute and Cosmos Foundation jointly organised the event. Read: Roundtable discusses data integrity for development Cosmos Foundation Chairman and Bay of Bengal Institute Chairman Enayetullah Khan delivered the welcome speech, while Cosmos Foundation President Dr Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury chaired the programme. Ambassador (Retd) Tariq Ahmad Karim, Honorary Emeritus Adviser to Cosmos Foundation and President of the Bay of Bengal Institute, delivered the closing remarks. Debapriya, also the head of the white paper committee, said the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics has to be established on a modern and scientific base. “And it should be given protection, for that National Statistics should be seen as the fifth pillar of the state. And like the Election Commission and Public Service Commission it should be turned into a commission,” the eminent economist said. August floods: Curtain rises on ‘Art for Aid: Rebuilding Lives’ at Gallery Cosmos