The Index of Services Production (ISP) aims to provide a monthly measure of India's services sector activity, covering 19 sub-sectors. The first release shows significant growth across most categories.
New Delhi, India Jul 14, 2026 ALN: India has introduced the Index of Services Production (ISP), a new monthly indicator that measures changes in the output of the services sector. Released by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI), the ISP is intended to complement the Index of Industrial Production (IIP) by providing a high-frequency measure of services sector activity. This initiative marks a significant step in India's efforts to enhance its data framework, reflecting the increasing importance of the services sector in the country's overall landscape.
The first experimental ISP, with 2024-25 as the base year, has been released for April 2026. It covers 19 services sub-sectors and captures around 60% of India's formal services sector. This comprehensive approach is aimed at providing stakeholders with timely and relevant data that can inform policy and business decisions.
According to MoSPI, the ISP is a short-term indicator of changes in the volume of output produced by the services sector relative to a base year. Like the IIP, it is designed to provide a monthly measure of production, but for services instead of industry. The introduction of the ISP is particularly relevant given the rapid growth of the services sector in India, which has become a crucial driver of growth and employment.
The index has been developed under the guidance of the Technical Advisory Committee on Index of Services Production (TAC-ISP), constituted in May 2025, with members from academia, industry associations, and government ministries. This collaborative effort ensures that the index is grounded in practical realities and reflects the diverse nature of the services sector.
According to MoSPI, the services sector accounts for more than half of India's activity. Until now, however, India did not have a monthly indicator to track short-term movements in services output similar to the IIP for manufacturing, mining, and electricity. The absence of such an indicator has been a significant gap in India's data framework.
The ISP seeks to address this gap by providing monthly data on the formal services sector. The ministry said the new index will help strengthen India's macro statistical framework by providing a regular measure of services production. This is particularly important for policymakers, economists, and business leaders who rely on accurate and timely data to make informed decisions.
The first experimental ISP, released for April 2026, shows broad-based growth across the services sector. According to MoSPI, the first experimental ISP points to broad-based growth across the services sector in April 2026. As many as 14 of the 19 sub-sectors recorded double-digit year-on-year growth, while nearly all categories registered positive growth. This positive trend is indicative of a robust recovery and expansion in the services sector following the disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Accommodation and food services led the expansion with a 37.2% increase over April 2025, followed by retail trade (30.8%), administrative and support services (28.7%), real estate (27.7%), telecommunications (22.8%), repair services (19.2%), road transport (18.5%), and warehousing and support activities (18.2%). These figures highlight the dynamic nature of the services sector and its ability to adapt and grow in response to changing consumer demands and market conditions.
Among the few sectors to record a decline were air transport, which contracted 13.9%, and railway transport, which slipped 0.4% year-on-year. These declines may reflect ongoing challenges in the travel and transport industries, which have been significantly impacted by global events and shifts in consumer behavior.
The current trial series of the ISP covers 19 sub-sectors across the formal services. These include wholesale and retail trade; repair services; accommodation and food services; railway, road, water, and air transport; warehousing and support activities for transportation; postal and courier services; telecommunications; information and broadcasting; banking and insurance; real estate; IT and computer-related services; professional, scientific and technical services; administrative and support services; and arts, entertainment, and recreation, according to MoSPI. This diverse range of sectors underscores the comprehensive nature of the ISP and its relevance to various stakeholders in the .
According to MoSPI, the ISP currently covers formal sector enterprises only, based on the availability of GST and administrative data. The index excludes services that are largely government-run, non-market activities, or dominated by the informal sector, including public administration, defense, and certain public services. This focus on the formal sector is intended to provide a clearer picture of the activities that are most relevant to policymakers and analysts.
MoSPI uses different data sources depending on the sector. The three principal data sources are:
This multi-faceted approach to data collection ensures that the ISP is based on reliable and comprehensive information, which is crucial for its effectiveness as an indicator.
Since GST data captures turnover in current prices, MoSPI adjusts these figures using sector-specific price indices to estimate real output. The ministry uses:
This adjustment for inflation is critical for ensuring that the ISP reflects real changes in service production rather than nominal fluctuations due to price changes.
The monthly ISP is currently being published on an experimental basis, according to MoSPI. The ministry said the trial series will help assess data quality, test the robustness of the methodology, and incorporate feedback from users before the index is finalized. It also noted that the indices for Railways, Banking, and Insurance are based on provisional monthly data and will undergo annual revisions. This phased approach allows for adjustments and improvements based on real-world applications and user experiences.
The ISP and IIP measure different parts of the . The IIP tracks production in mining, manufacturing, and electricity, while the ISP tracks production across 19 formal services sub-sectors. Together, the two indices provide monthly indicators for both industry and a significant part of the services sector. This dual approach is essential for understanding the overall health of the and facilitating informed decision-making by policymakers and business leaders.
According to MoSPI, the ISP expands India's suite of macro indicators by introducing a monthly measure of services production. The current trial series covers around 60% of the formal services sector, making it the first regular high-frequency indicator for a large segment of India's services. The ministry said the index will be published every month on an experimental basis while its methodology and data quality continue to be evaluated. The introduction of the ISP is expected to enhance transparency in the services sector, provide valuable insights for planning, and support the overall development of India's data infrastructure.
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