- Revised ICI series to adopt 2022-23 as base year
- Iron ore included as ninth core industry
The Office of Economic Adviser (OEA), under the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), has issued a notification announcing the release of the revised Index of Core Industries (ICI) with the 2022-23 base year on 20 July 2026. The revised series will expand the core sector basket to nine industries with the inclusion of iron ore and will include the provisional ICI for June 2026 along with the back series from April 2023 to May 2026.
Iron ore included as ninth core industry
The revised ICI expands the core sector basket from eight to nine industries with the inclusion of iron ore, reflecting its growing contribution to industrial production and the steel value chain. Consequently, the weights of all core industries have been recalibrated using the revised 2022-23 Index of Industrial Production (IIP) framework.
Methodology aligned with revised IIP
To ensure consistency with the revised IIP series, the steel index will now be compiled using gross steel production, replacing the earlier net production approach. In the coal segment, only raw coal has been retained, while washed coal and coal middlings have been excluded to eliminate double counting. The ICI is compiled on a monthly basis, and will include provisional ICI for June 2026 (in addition to previous 38 months).
Significance
The ICI is a key high-frequency indicator of industrial activity and accounts for nearly 40% of the IIP. The inclusion of iron ore is expected to improve the representation of the mining and steel sectors, making the index more reflective of India’s current industrial structure.
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