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The Labour Bureau is to release soon a new series of the Consumer Price Index Numbers for Industrial Workers (CPI-IW) with an updated base to 2001. The new series will be an improvement over the existing series in view of the more representative character and reflection of latest consumption pattern of the industrial workers. Eight more cities have been included for 2001 series increasing the coverage list of cities to 78. The number of markets has also been expanded to 289 from 226 in the current series. The sample size has also been increased to 41,040 families from 32,616 families for the conduct of the family income and expenditure survey. The basket of consumption has been expanded in the new series to 370 items from 260 items in 1982 series. The CPI-IW is currently being compiled on base 1982=100 on monthly basis for 70 industrial centres. It is the single most important price statistics which has significant financial implications. It is used to regulate the dearness allowance of Government employees and the workers in the industrial sector. It is also employed in revision of minimum wages in scheduled industrial employments (except rural labour), measuring of inflation in retail prices etc.
The new series has been approved by the Technical Advisory Committee on Statistics of Prices and Cost of Living (TAC on SPCL). The representatives of employers’ organisations, the central and state governments, RBI, etc. have endorsed the release of new series of CPI-IW (Base 2001=100). The representatives of workers organisations have appreciated the efforts of the Labour Bureau and TAC on SPCL in bringing out the new series. However the Central Trade Union Members at the National Level Users Meeting held recently on the subject, desired to have involvement at all stages of index compilation in future.
MLD / Lk /Labour 53-05 (CPI-IW new series) July 12
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