India's new GDP series: GST, corporate data drive new methodology

New Delhi: India’s new gross domestic product series makes greater use of corporate filings, goods and services tax records and labour surveys, the statistics ministry has said in a detailed sources and methodology report for the compilation of GDP.

A key change is the increased use of company-level data to estimate activity in the non-financial private corporate sector, according to the report, ‘Sources and Methods for Compilation of National Accounts Statistics’, released on Monday. India introduced the new GDP series in February, shifting the base year to 2022-23 from 2011-12.

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The methodology draws on corporate filings and limited liability partnership (LLP) records to improve industry classification, measure economic activity and allocate output among companies operating across multiple segments.

The publication “brings together the recommendations made in the reports (already available in the public domain)” and presents, in a consolidated manner, the statistical framework and processes used to compile major macroeconomic aggregates under the new national accounts series, the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) said in a statement.

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Earlier this month, former finance secretary Subhash Garg raised concerns over the latest GDP estimates, which showed the economy growing 7.8% in the April-June quarter. He argued that the April-June 2025 nominal GDP was revised down to Rs 80 lakh crore from Rs 86 lakh crore to make growth in April-June 2026 “look better.”

The methodology document, however, noted that estimates are revised as additional and more comprehensive data become available. “As additional and more comprehensive data become available, the estimates are revised to improve their accuracy and consistency,” it said.

The revision policy, the ministry said, is systematic and consistent with international practices, including the recommendations of the System of National Accounts (SNA) 2008 and the International Monetary Fund’s Quarterly National Accounts Manual.

“Each statistical release clearly identifies the revision status of the estimates and provides explanatory notes, describing significant changes arising from updated data or methodological improvements,” the report said. The framework also changes the estimation of the household and unincorporated sector. After evaluating different approaches, the ministry has adopted direct estimation using the Annual Survey of Unincorporated Sector Enterprises (ASUSE) and Periodic Labour Force Survey(PLFS).