Release of Report of the Technical Advisory Committee on Compilation of the Index of Services Production (ISP) with Base Year 2024-25

Now writing the full study note.

1. At a Glance

ISP (Index of Services Production) is India's first-of-its-kind monthly high-frequency indicator for the formal services sector, conceived to fill the statistical gap alongside the existing Index of Industrial Production (IIP) [S1].
Services contribute nearly 53% of India's GVA, yet had no dedicated high-frequency output tracker until ISP — making this a major statistical-system upgrade [S1].
Base year fixed at 2024-25; a Technical Advisory Committee (TAC-ISP) was constituted to design its conceptual and methodological framework [S1][S2].
Directly relevant for Prelims (MoSPI institutional facts) and Mains GS-III (economic indicators, statistical governance).

7 July 2026: MoSPI released the Report of the Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) on Compilation of ISP, outlining the conceptual and methodological framework [S1].
This followed release of an Approach Paper on 27 April 2026, opened for public/stakeholder comments (deadline 5 May 2026) [S2][S3].
A trial ISP series is slated for launch around 14 July 2026 [S1].

May 2025: TAC-ISP constituted by MoSPI under chairpersonship of Ms. Debjani Ghosh, Distinguished Fellow, NITI Aayog, with 24 members drawn from academia, industry associations, and services-sector ministries/departments [S3].
Over the following year, TAC-ISP held multiple deliberations on data availability, coverage, and methodology [S3].
27 April 2026: MoSPI released the Approach Paper, analysing over 40 services sub-sectors for data availability/suitability, placed in public domain for stakeholder feedback [S2][S3].
7 July 2026: Final TAC Report released, covering scope, coverage, and conceptual/methodological framework aligned with international best practices [S1][S3].
Predecessor/parallel: Index of Industrial Production (IIP) — ISP is explicitly positioned as its services-sector counterpart [S1].

Item	Detail
Full name	Index of Services Production (ISP)
Base year	2024-25 [S1]
Nodal ministry	Ministry of Statistics & Programme Implementation (MoSPI) [S1]
Committee	Technical Advisory Committee on Compilation of ISP (TAC-ISP) [S1][S3]
Chair	Ms. Debjani Ghosh, Distinguished Fellow, NITI Aayog [S3]
Committee constituted	May 2025 [S3]
Committee strength	24 members [S3]
Approach Paper release	27 April 2026 [S2][S3]
Sub-sectors analysed	40+ services sub-sectors (trade, transport, banking/insurance, communication, hotels/restaurants, real estate, professional/scientific/technical services, arts/entertainment/recreation) [S2]
Data sources proposed	Aggregated GST data (GSTN), administrative datasets (railways, aviation, banking, insurance), ASISSE (health/education) [S2]
Services sector GVA share	~53% of India's GVA [S1]
Trial index launch	14 July 2026 (planned) [S1]
Confidentiality note	MoSPI to use only aggregated GST data, not unit-level data [S2]

Economic: Fills a critical gap — services (~53% of GVA) previously lacked a monthly output tracker comparable to IIP for industry; enables better nowcasting of GDP and monetary policy inputs [S1].
Administrative/Governance: Reflects MoSPI's push toward data convergence — using existing administrative/tax data (GST) instead of new primary surveys, reducing respondent burden and cost [S2].
Statistical/Methodological: Employs multi-source approach (GST + administrative + survey-based ASISSE) across 40+ sub-sectors, aligned with international statistical best practices [S1][S2][S3].
Institutional: Demonstrates NITI Aayog–MoSPI collaboration through TAC leadership drawing on academia and industry expertise [S3].

May 2025: TAC-ISP constituted [S3].
27 April 2026: Approach Paper on ISP compilation released for public consultation [S2][S3].
5 May 2026: Deadline for stakeholder comments on Approach Paper [S2].
7 July 2026: TAC Report on ISP released [S1].
14 July 2026 (planned): Trial ISP series to be launched [S1].

ISP base year is 2024-25 [S1].
Nodal ministry: Ministry of Statistics & Programme Implementation (MoSPI) [S1].
TAC-ISP constituted in May 2025 [S3].
TAC-ISP chairperson: Ms. Debjani Ghosh, Distinguished Fellow, NITI Aayog [S3].
TAC-ISP has 24 members [S3].
Services sector contributes ~53% of India's GVA [S1].
Approach Paper released on 27 April 2026 [S2].
Approach Paper analysed more than 40 services sub-sectors [S2].
Proposed primary data source: aggregated GST data from GSTN [S2].
ISP positioned as the services-sector counterpart to the Index of Industrial Production (IIP) [S1].
MoSPI clarified it does not require unit-level GST data, preserving confidentiality [S2].
Trial ISP series planned for launch on 14 July 2026 [S1].
TAC Report released on 7 July 2026 [S1].

GS-III: Indian Economy — Statistics, National Income (GDP/GVA measurement), growth indicators, mobilisation of resources.
Syllabus heading: "Issues related to planning, mobilization of resources, growth, development and employment" / statistical infrastructure of the economy.
Possible question stems:
"Why does India need a high-frequency Index of Services Production despite the services sector already being captured in GDP estimates? Discuss." (GS-III)
"Examine the significance of leveraging administrative data (GST, etc.) for economic statistics compilation in India." (GS-III)
"Discuss the challenges in measuring the informal/formal services sector output in India." (GS-III)

Index of Industrial Production (IIP) — ISP's structural analogue for industry; useful for comparison of methodology.
GDP/GVA estimation methodology in India — base year revisions, sectoral classification (NIC).
GST and GSTN — as an administrative data source now feeding official statistics.
National Statistical Commission / MoSPI institutional structure — governance of India's statistical system.
Base year revision exercises (e.g., WPI, CPI, IIP base year changes) — comparative pattern of statistical modernisation.
NITI Aayog's role in data/statistics initiatives — institutional overlap with MoSPI.
Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) — another MoSPI high-frequency indicator, useful comparison of data collection approach.

Do not confuse ISP with IIP — ISP covers services, IIP covers industry/manufacturing/mining/electricity.
TAC-ISP is chaired by Debjani Ghosh (NITI Aayog), not a MoSPI official — a common misattribution trap.
Base year for ISP is 2024-25, not to be confused with IIP's base year (2011-12) or CPI's base year (2012).
The Approach Paper (April 2026) and the final TAC Report (July 2026) are two distinct documents — don't conflate their dates.
ISP relies on aggregated administrative data (GST etc.), not a fresh primary survey — a nuance examiners may test.

[S1] Release of Report of the Technical Advisory Committee on Compilation of the Index of Services Production (ISP) with Base Year 2024-25 — https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2282014 — (tier: 1)
[S2] An Approach Paper to Compilation of the Index of Service Production (ISP) for the formal sector of the economy — https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2255933&reg=1&lang=1 — (tier: 1)
[S3] FAQs on Index of Services Production – Trial Indices with Base year 2024-25 — https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2277392&reg=48&lang=1 — (tier: 1)