The colonial state and statistical knowledge

The development of both the modern state and modern scientific discourses i n the non-Western world are closely linked together, both being the outcome of the colonial encounter. Using a Foucauldian framework of power/knowledg e and his notions of 'episteme' and 'governmentality', this article explore s how colonial governmentality in India produced statistical knowledge of t he country thus ushering in a new social scientific discourse of 'progress' , 'history', 'economy' and 'society'.