Data science is still a very nascent field in India, despite the recent surge in interest. From agriculture to healthcare, there are a plethora of challenges the Government faces on a day-to-day basis, and that was the primary reason for founding a data science department under the NITI Aayog initiative. On this Independence Day, we thought what better way to acquaint our community with these challenges and how our Goverment is using data science to tackle them, than bring NITI Aayog's Head of Data Science straight to you? Dr.Avik spoke about various topics, from his love of mathematics to his master's and Ph.D thesis techniques. He also provided details about the work performed by the data science team under the NITI Aayog initiative, a must-listen for all Indians.