This is, unfortunately, incorrect information. The 183 days in the last five years question on the citizenship application makes NO distinction between days as a PR and days before PR. If, as you describe, you have been to india for a year before becoming PR, then you need a new certificate. The PCC you submitted for your PR application does not cover the close to six months between issuance of the PR and you leaving india. According to section 22(2)(a) of the citizenship act, IRCC has to ensure that you did not commit any crimes in the four years before applying. With a PCC that does not cover those 5-6 months before your move, IRCC can not confirm this.
Again, note that there is no "days before PR don't count" rule anywhere on the form, the guide or in the Citizenship Act.
If getting a new PCC is time intensive, you could try to explain that on the form and say that you will submit the PCC later while the application is in process. I would not recommend that but other people are doing it apparently.
But in any case you must answer YES to the question that you spent 183 days or more in another country in the last four years. Everything else would be you misstating the facts.
