India’s unemployment rate hits a 3-month high of 7.8%

According to figures obtained from the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE), the unemployment rate in India surged to 7.8 per cent in March, reaching a three-month high. The figures indicate a marked deterioration in the nation’s labour market conditions.

In December last year, India’s unemployment rate increased to 8.30 per cent but lowered to 7.14 per cent in January, as reflected by the data.

CMIE Managing Director, Mahesh Vyas, said to PTI, “India’s labour markets deteriorated in March 2023. India’s unemployment rate increased from 7.5 per cent in February to 7.8 per cent in March. The effect of this is compounded by the simultaneous fall in the labour force participation rate, which fell from 39.9 per cent to 39.8 per cent.”

“The decline in India’s labour market conditions led to a drop in the unemployment rate from 36.9 per cent in February to 36.7 per cent in March,” he added.

During this timeframe, the total number of unemployed people in India’s labour markets decreased from 409.9 million to 407.6 million.

The states with the highest unemployment rate are as follows: Haryana – 26.8 per cent, Rajasthan – 26.4 per cent, Jammu and Kashmir – 23.1 per cent, Sikkim – 20.7 per cent, Bihar – 17.6 per cent, and Jharkhand – 17.5 per cent.

(Information sourced from CMIE)

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