The Consumer Price Index (CPI) in India has a new base year: 2024. This update helps track changes in the cost of living more accurately. CPI measures price changes for goods and services that households buy. The base year is the benchmark with an index fixed at 100. Every few years, the base year gets revised to match how people’s buying habits change. The latest update is based on data from the Household Consumption Expenditure Survey (HCES) 2023-24. It shows that food and beverages now make up 36.75% of the CPI basket, down from 45.86%. Meanwhile, transport and communication, housing and utilities, and personal care have higher weights than before. The CPI basket has grown from 299 to 358 items, including 308 goods and 50 services. Items such as AirPods, hand sanitisers, OTT subscriptions, air purifiers, ecommerce purchases, and international flights are new additions. Outdated items like library charges, radio fees, and horse-cart fares have been dropped. More markets are covered now—1,465 rural and 1,395 urban, up from 1,181 and 1,114, respectively. For the first time, prices from 12 online markets in big cities (population over 2.5 million) are included to capture ecommerce trends. Free items under government schemes, like foodgrains from the Public Distribution System, are not counted because CPI measures household spending, not just food intake. Prices for services will be taken directly from official websites and digital platforms, like airline fares, OTT subscription fees, telecom tariffs, postal charges, and fuel prices. The government will revise the base year every five years going forward. The Household Consumption Expenditure Survey will be conducted every three years to keep CPI data fresh and accurate.