New Delhi, July 7: India is set to introduce its first-ever Index of Services Production (ISP), with the Centre finalising the framework for the new economic indicator and scheduling the release of its trial monthly series on July 14. The initiative marks a significant step towards improving the measurement of activity in the country’s services sector, which contributes more than half of India’s economic output.
The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) announced on Tuesday that the proposed Index of Services Production will provide, for the first time, a comprehensive monthly measure of short-term movements in India’s formal services sector. The new index is designed to complement the existing Index of Industrial Production (IIP) and provide policymakers, businesses and analysts with more timely economic data.
According to the ministry, the services sector accounts for nearly 53 per cent of India’s Gross Value Added (GVA), while also generating substantial employment and serving as a key driver of economic growth, investment and exports. The introduction of a dedicated monthly production index is expected to strengthen the country’s statistical framework for monitoring service-sector performance.
The proposed index will primarily draw upon aggregated Goods and Services Tax (GST) data shared by the GST Network, alongside administrative datasets from sectors including railways, aviation, banking and insurance. The ministry stated that the availability of monthly GST information has significantly enhanced India’s statistical ecosystem by providing regular data on outward supplies reported by millions of businesses.
To ensure wider sectoral coverage, the ministry will also use data from the Annual Survey of Unincorporated Sector Enterprises in Services Sector and Establishments (ASISSE). This will enable the inclusion of GST-exempt sectors such as health and education in the index.
MoSPI clarified that it does not require or access unit-level GST data while compiling the Index of Services Production. The methodology relies only on aggregated datasets shared through the GST Network and other administrative sources.
The framework for the new index was developed following recommendations made by the Technical Advisory Committee on Index of Services Production (TAC-ISP), constituted by the ministry in May 2025 under the chairpersonship of Debjani Ghosh, Distinguished Fellow at NITI Aayog.
The committee conducted extensive consultations on the conceptual, methodological and operational aspects of the index before releasing an approach paper for public comments in April this year. Following stakeholder consultations, the committee submitted its final report.
The report recommends compiling the Index of Services Production as a Laspeyres volume index with 2024-25 as the base year, using Gross Value Added weights and publishing sector-wise indices at the two-digit National Industrial Classification (NIC) 2025 level.
The committee has also recommended that both the overall index and sector-specific indices be released initially on a trial basis to obtain stakeholder feedback and validate the methodology before regular publication.
According to the recommendations, the Index of Services Production will eventually be compiled every month and released within 60 days of the reference month, providing a timely indicator of activity in India’s services economy and strengthening evidence-based economic policymaking.
