The data for the index would be collected from 1,000 villages, Chief Statistician of India Pronab Sen said on the sidelines of a national seminar on the results of the 61st round of the National Sample Survey.
The Central Statistical Organisation is working towards launching two new consumer price indices for rural and urban India (CPI-R and CPI-U). The CPI-U would replace the CPI-UNME by the middle of next year, Sen said.
The CPI-R will take some more time to be ready. "Data for the CPI-U will be collected from 300 cities and towns," he added. At present, CPI-UNME data are collected from 59 select urban centres.
When asked whether the new indices would be of weekly or monthly periodicity, Sen said, "It will be difficult to collect such data on a weekly basis. It will be monthly."
The Reserve Bank of India on Monday said consumer price inflation remained firm during the second quarter of 2007-08 and continued to be above wholesale price index-based inflation, mainly reflecting the impact of higher food prices.
The CSO is also undertaking a review to shift the base year of the Index of Industrial Production (IIP) from 1993-94 to 1999-2000.
"There are some anomalies that have cropped in. We are trying to clear them," said Suresh Tendulkar, chairman, National Statistical Commission.
