Economy CA — CPI Base Year 2024 &...

CURRENT AFFAIRS | MARCH 2026

CLAT Relevance

CPI base year revision — inflation measurement, MoSPI
COICOP framework — international classification system
New CPI weights — food, housing, transport priorities
Economic data interpretation for GK section

CPI Base Year Changed to 2024

MoSPI releases new CPI with base year 2024 (earlier 2012)
January inflation under new series: 2.75%
Adopts COICOP 2018 (Classification of Individual Consumption According to Purpose) — a UN system
Replaces earlier 6 broad groups with granular classification

Key Facts: New CPI Structure

12 divisions, 43 groups, 92 classes, 162 subclasses, 358 items (up from 299)
New items added: Airpods
Items removed: Audio cassettes
First time: Rural house rent included

CPI Weights — New Structure

CPI Division Weights (Top to Bottom)

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Food and beverages	36.75%
Housing/water/electricity/gas	17.87%
Transport	8.80%
Clothing and footwear	6.38%
Health	6.10%
Personal care/social protection	5.04%
Furnishings	4.47%
Information and communication	3.61%
Restaurants	3.35%
Education	3.33%
Paan/tobacco	2.99%
Recreation	1.52%

Benefits of New CPI

Global comparability — aligned with COICOP 2018 used internationally
Better granularity — 358 items vs earlier 299
Classification by usage — more accurate consumption pattern mapping
Rural house rent inclusion — fills a major gap in earlier series
Modern basket — reflects current spending habits (airpods in, cassettes out)

Mnemonic: CPI Base Years
2024 (new) ← 2012 (previous) ← 2010 (IW series) ← 2001 (earlier)
Remember: COICOP = UN framework, MoSPI = releases CPI, RBI = uses CPI for inflation targeting (4% +/- 2%)

Source: UPSC Essentials, The Indian Express — March 2026