The Committee would advise the Government on:

1. Various conceptual and technical issues emerging from time to time,

2. Need to change items or their weights at the item level in the current WPI series to reflect changes in price data availability, changes in quality or significant change in production and trade, all this within the overall framework of group and major group level weights,

3. Issues regarding changes in sourcing the price information,

4. Substitution of existing items/varieties/centres in case of non-reporting of price data on regular basis,

5. Inclusion of new groups like ‘services’ in the WPI.

6. Review of collection of price data and comparison with CPI,

7. Need to set up Working Group for the comprehensive revision of WPI series,

8. Any other issue which Standing Committee feels necessary.

The Working Group also decided that the Chairman of the Standing Committee should be an eminent person with knowledge and understanding of relevant issues and the Members of the Standing Committee may be drawn from various Ministries and Organisations of the Government and academic institutions. A special cell in the Office of the Economic Adviser will function as Secretariat to the Standing Committee and the Additional Economic Adviser, in charge of the WPI Division will be the Member Secretary of this committee.