National Statistics Office proposes shifting enterprise survey to financial year cycle from 2027

The National Statistics Office has proposed shifting the Annual Survey of Unincorporated Sector Enterprises to a financial-year cycle starting in April 2027. A senior official from the ministry of statistics and programme implementation stated that the next survey round will run from April 2027 to March 2028, replacing the current January to December calendar.

Survey Updates

The revised questionnaire will expand to include questions on gender-specific barriers faced by women entrepreneurs and investment trends. It will also capture energy use patterns, including different sources of electricity utilized by small businesses. At the request of the textiles ministry, two new questions will identify establishments in handloom, power-loom, and handicraft activities.

Transition Plan

To ensure data continuity during the transition, the survey will still run for January to March 2027 using the existing schedule. The ministry has uploaded the draft questionnaire online and invited feedback from researchers, ministries, and the public until November 15, 2026.

Context

Official government surveys are critical tools for policy planning and national accounting in India. Aligning business surveys with the financial year helps economists compare data more easily with other fiscal reports.