India, Feb. 12 -- India's inflation rate rose to 2.75% in January 2026 under the new CPI series released on Thursday, as against 1.3% in December 2025. That gives the Reserve Bank of India a long runway to maintain status quo on its repo rate.

The new Consumer Price index cuts the weight of volatile items such as food to about 36.8% from nearly half and shifts the base year to 2024 from 2012. The prices have also been collected nationwide. New categories, such as rentals for rural housing, have been added.

The upgraded CPI will also track spending in areas such as online shopping, dining out and streaming services including Amazon and Netflix.

The overhaul comes amid scrutiny of the RBI's inflation forecasting model after it consistent...