Centre to hold consultation on proposed base year changes for GDP, inflation, IIP calculation on Dec 23

Ministry of statistics will hold a consultative workshop on the base revision of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), Consumer Price Index (CPI), and Index of Industrial Production (IIP) on December 23 in New Delhi. National income estimates based on the new series are scheduled to be released on 27th February, 2026.

The consultative workshop will discuss the proposed changes in the base year for purpose of calculation the national income, inflation and industrial output, and improvements over the current methodology of calculation of headline numbers pertaining to the macro economy.

The new GDP and IIP series will have 2022-23 as the base year, and new CPI inflation series will have 2024 as the base year. Significant improvements in data collection over the current methodology are likely to be witnessed once the new series is applicable. 

It may be noted that for calculation of inflation, new series is likely to track prices of items on e-commerce platforms for the purpose of ascertaining inflation data.

Under the new methodology, GDP calculation will make use of the GST data, data from the unincorporated sector while inflation data collection will be a more advanced tech-based granular data collection factoring in price movements at additional cities and tracking additional items.

The government released the second discussion paper on compilation of GDP from expenditure approach, the government said.

In the proposed changes in CPI, MoSPI highlighted the enhancement in coverage in terms of markets, towns and items, adoption of Classification of Individual Consumption by Purpose (COICOP) 2018, refinement in methodology of index compilation, inclusion of new data sources including administrative and online data, use of latest technology and more granular data dissemination,” said a statement from the ministry of statistics.

Adoption of Classification of Individual Consumption by Purpose (COICOP) 2018 – an international framework for classifying household consumption – for purpose inflation calculation in the new series is a very significant step as it will facilitate global comparison of consumption, living standards and price movements. COICOP was issued by the Department of Economic and Social Affairs of the United Nations in 2018.