New GDP series to improve informal sector estimates, add double deflation

India's revamped GDP series will use richer data and double deflation to better capture the informal economy, address IMF concerns and improve accuracy from 2026

India’s new national accounts will leverage new data sources and surveys to enhance the measurement of the country’s informal economy, and introduce double deflation methods across sectors, replacing the current system that relies on a single deflation mechanism in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) calculations.

 

These changes, which would also tackle some of the data adequacy concerns raised by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) about India’s national accounts, were highlighted by Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (Mospi) Secretary Saurabh Garg at a consultative workshop on Tuesday.

 

The revised national accounts series will rely on newly available and more comprehensive set