- Why in news
- On 1 October 2026, MoSPI's National Statistics Office announced the third CAPEX survey of large private companies, to run from October to December 2026.
- What it is
- The Forward-Looking Survey on Private Corporate Sector CAPEX Investment Intentions is run by the National Statistics Office under MoSPI. It collects past, current and planned capital spending from large private companies. It gives an early read on private investment, which is hard to track from other data.
- Legal basis
- The survey is conducted under the Collection of Statistics Act, 2008.
- Survey frame
- The frame is drawn from active enterprises registered with the Ministry of Corporate Affairs, subject to eligibility and turnover criteria.
- Sector split, CAPEX 2025
- Manufacturing had the largest share of provisional 2025-26 capex at 50.17% (₹5,73,900 crore), followed by information and communication.
- Realisation ratio
- The realisation ratio compares actual capex with intended capex. It was 96.3% for 2024-25.
- Confidentiality
- Unit-level data are not released, to protect the investment plans of individual firms.
Don’t confuse with CAPEX survey vs. Union Budget capex: The survey measures private corporate capital spending and intentions. Budget capex is central government capital expenditure.
Economy terms and data: 42 Prelims questions since 2013, rising in recent years; they test what a term or instrument means. In Mains, 12 news-triggered questions.
Why it matters
- Gives timely, forward-looking data on private investment, which supports policy on growth and the investment cycle.
Problems
- Depends on timely and complete responses from selected firms, and covers only large corporates, not small or unorganised units.
Way forward
- Widen coverage and keep the panel stable so that intentions can be compared with actual spending over time.
Put in your answer
CAPEX 2025 realisation ratio: Actual 2024-25 capex was 96.3% of intentions, suggesting firms broadly follow through on plans.
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UPSC’s own questions that come close to this issue, from our Prelims and Mains banks.
No practice question for this one; the card may still help an answer. Why: Investment-intent survey by NSO under the Collection of Statistics Act, 2008; routine data, so no question.
Worth revising until Prelims 2028: most news questions come within two years of the event.