Service output index to debut next month with FY25 base

India is set to debut its Index of Service Production (ISP) in July 2026, establishing the first formal high-frequency measurement mechanism for the services...

What Happened

India is set to debut its Index of Service Production (ISP) in July 2026, establishing the first formal high-frequency measurement mechanism for the services sector — the backbone of the Indian economy contributing over 50% of Gross Value Added (GVA).
The ISP adopts 2024-25 as its base year, aligning with contemporary economic structures and making it immediately useful for tracking current output trends without legacy distortions.
The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) will release the index monthly, mirroring the structure and release discipline of the long-standing Index of Industrial Production (IIP).
Initial coverage spans trade, transport, banking, insurance, telecommunications, hospitality, real estate, and professional services — sectors for which administrative data and GST filings provide reliable monthly proxies.
The ISP completes a crucial gap in India's statistical architecture: while the industrial sector has had a monthly output barometer (IIP) since independence, the services sector — which has outpaced industry in size and growth — had no equivalent.

Static Topic Bridges

Services Sector in the Indian Economy

The services sector is the largest contributor to India's GDP and GVA, accounting for over 50% of GVA at current prices. It encompasses trade, transport, communication, financial services, real estate, professional services, public administration, defence, and education. Services also constitute the largest source of employment in the organised sector and the primary destination for foreign direct investment (FDI) in recent decades. Despite its dominance, the sector lacked a real-time output index — a gap ISP now addresses.

Services sector share of GVA: >50% (at current prices)
Largest FDI recipient sector in India
Encompasses both market services (taxable, captured via GST) and non-market services (education, health, public administration)
ISP's initial phase covers market services; non-market services (health, education) added in a later phase

Connection to this news: ISP is the first tool that will allow policymakers, analysts, and the RBI Monetary Policy Committee to track services output in near-real time, closing the longest-standing measurement gap in Indian macroeconomics.

Index of Industrial Production (IIP) — Structural Context

The IIP has been India's primary monthly output index since the 1950s, tracking mining, manufacturing, and electricity output. Published by the National Statistics Office (NSO) under MoSPI with a six-week lag, it uses sectoral weights based on GVA shares from the base year. The IIP's periodic revision of base years (most recently to 2022-23) ensures it remains representative of actual industrial structure. ISP is explicitly modelled on IIP's design — same releasing body, same frequency, comparable lag.

IIP current base year: 2022-23
IIP release lag: Six weeks after reference month
IIP sectors: Mining, Manufacturing, Electricity (plus Gas, Water Supply from 2022-23 series)
ISP base year: 2024-25 (more recent than current IIP base year)
Both released by: National Statistics Office (NSO), MoSPI

Connection to this news: ISP is the services-sector analogue of IIP. Together, they will provide comprehensive monthly output coverage across all major sectors of the Indian economy for the first time.

GST as a Statistical Tool

The Goods and Services Tax (GST) system, implemented in July 2017, generates a vast body of real-time economic data through mandatory outward supply filings (GSTR-1, GSTR-3B). MoSPI has leveraged GST data as a key input for ISP, particularly for wholesale and retail trade, real estate, telecom, and professional services — sectors where enterprise surveys were sparse. GST's nationwide coverage and digital trail make it a reliable administrative data source for statistical agencies.

GST implemented: July 1, 2017
GST Council: Constitutional body under Article 279A
Role in ISP: Primary data source for most market services categories
Advantage: Monthly frequency, near-universal coverage of formal sector, digitally auditable
Limitation: Captures only GST-registered (formal) entities; informal services sector excluded

Connection to this news: GST data is one of three pillars of ISP data architecture, enabling monthly tracking of the bulk of market services without new enterprise surveys.

National Statistics Office (NSO) and Statistical Governance

The NSO was formed by merging the Central Statistics Office (CSO) and the National Sample Survey Office (NSSO) in 2019. It operates under MoSPI and is responsible for compiling GDP, CPI, IIP, and now ISP. The National Statistical Commission (NSC), a statutory body, advises on statistical standards and methodology. India's statistical system is governed by the Collection of Statistics Act, 2008, which provides legal authority for data collection.

NSO formed: 2019 (merger of CSO + NSSO)
Parent ministry: MoSPI
Statutory basis: Collection of Statistics Act, 2008
Advisory body: National Statistical Commission (NSC)
Key publications: GDP (quarterly and advance estimates), CPI, IIP, WPI, ISP (new)

Connection to this news: NSO under MoSPI is the releasing authority for ISP; the launch represents an expansion of NSO's high-frequency indicator portfolio.

Key Facts & Data

Full name: Index of Service Production (ISP)
Releasing body: Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) / National Statistics Office (NSO)
Base year: 2024-25
First release: July 14, 2026 (April 2026 data; trial indices for 2025-26 also released)
Release frequency: Monthly, with ~60-day lag (on the 29th of each month)
Sectors in initial phase: Trade, transport (railways and air), banking, insurance, telecommunications, hospitality, real estate, professional services, entertainment
Sectors in later phase: Health and education
Three data pillars: Administrative records; GST outward supply data; ASISSE (Annual Survey of Incorporated Services Sector Enterprises)
Services sector share of India's GVA: Over 50%
Modelled on: IIP (Index of Industrial Production) — same ministry, same frequency, comparable methodology
IIP's current base year: 2022-23 (revised from 2011-12)
Policy significance: Enables RBI Monetary Policy Committee to factor in services output alongside industrial output; improves GDP advance estimate quality; fills last major gap in India's high-frequency macroeconomic data architecture
GST implementation year: 2017 — data now mature enough to serve as reliable ISP input