In a significant step to improve the precision and relevance of economic data, the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) is set to update the base year for the Consumer Price Index (CPI) from 2012 to 2024, as reported in the Economic Survey released on Monday.

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The base year serves as a benchmark for measuring economic changes and comparing performance over time. Updating it will ensure that economic indicators better reflect current economic conditions.

The Economic Survey also highlighted the need to accelerate the development of a producer price index for goods and services to better understand cost-push inflation trends.

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Additionally, an Advisory Committee on National Accounts Statistics has been established to review and update the base year for Gross Domestic Product (GDP) calculations. Regular updates to the base year are essential to keep indices aligned with economic shifts, including changes in consumption patterns, sector weights, and the introduction of new sectors.

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"The update of base years for critical data series like GDP, price indices, and volume indices such as the Index of Industrial Production (IIP) should be done as soon as feasible," the report emphasized. It also noted that state-level variants of indices like the IIP could help identify emerging regional trends.

The survey advocates for integrating high-frequency price monitoring data for essential food items, linking data from farm gate to final consumer to better track price changes and improve food security.

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In related findings, the Economic Survey 2024 also flagged issues with product misselling in the insurance sector. It called for prompt and fair claim settlements and a reduction in claim rejections to enhance insurance coverage and address these concerns.

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