Service output index to debut next month with FY25 base

The government will launch the Index of Service Production (ISP) next month, a new high-frequency indicator aimed at tracking growth in the services sector, with 2024-25 as the base year, the statistics ministry said Wednesday.

The index will cover sectors like wholesale and retail trade, transport, banking, insurance, telecommunications, hotels & restaurants, real estate, professional, scientific and technical services, and arts, entertainment & recreation.

“As counterpart of the IIP (Index of Industrial Production) which measures the economic growth of the industrial sector, ISP will cover the formal services sector and will be released on a monthly basis,” the ministry said in a statement.


The ISP is a short-term indicator that measures changes in the real output of the services sector over time relative to a base year.

The services sector has become the backbone of India’s economy, contributing more than 50% of the country’s gross value added since 2013-14.

Health and education services will be incorporated into the ISP framework later, following the release of the results of the Annual Survey of Incorporated Services Sector Enterprises (ASISSE).

The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) launched the ASISSE in April this year.

The first trial release of the index, covering FY26 and April 2026 data, is scheduled for July 14. Thereafter, monthly trial indices will be published with a lag of around 60 days, on the 29th of each month or the next working day in case of a holiday.

The ISP will draw on three primary data sources: administrative and secondary datasets, goods and services tax (GST) data, and ASISSE. The ministry noted that some of these sources are still evolving and that GST data will be used for statistical applications for the first time.

Certain services will remain outside the scope of the index, particularly those linked to core government functions, non-market activities, or the informal economy. These include public administration and defence, financial services excluding banking and insurance, social work activities without accommodation, membership organisations, personal services, and activities of private households employing domestic workers.

To guide the index's development, the government constituted a Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) in May 2025 under the chairpersonship of Debjani Ghosh, Distinguished Fellow at NITI Aayog. The committee’s report is expected to be released in the first half of July.