The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, the National Statistical Office (NSO) in its latest employment-unemployment indicators report has showed that unemployment rate in India declined to 3.1 per cent in the calendar year 2023 (CY23) from 3.6 per cent in CY22 and 4.2 per cent in CY21, reflecting continued improvement in the labour markets.
During the CY23, the unemployment rate in both rural and urban areas declined to 2.4 per cent and 5.2 per cent, respectively, from 2.8 per cent and 5.9 per cent in CY22. The unemployment rate for rural women at 1.9 per cent was lower than for rural men at 2.7 per cent in CY23, whereas in urban areas, the rate was higher for women at 7.5 per cent compared to men at 4.4 per cent.
The latest survey also showed that the labour force participation rate (LFPR), which defines the share of people either working or actively seeking work in the population, increased significantly to 59.8 per cent in CY23from 56.1 per cent in CY22 at the national level. The rural LFPR stood at 63.4 per cent in 2023, significantly up from 58.5 per cent in CY22, whereas its urban equivalent rose to 51.4 per cent from 50 per cent in the corresponding period.
Besides, the report also showed that the ratio of women workers to men working as legislators, senior officials, and managers stood at 14.4 per cent in 2023, whereas the ratio of women workers to men working as professionals and technical workers stood at 49.4 per cent during the year.