India’s unemployment rate edges up to 5.1% in March; labour participation dips

India’s unemployment rate rose marginally in March while overall labour force participation declined slightly, official data showed on Wednesday.

The unemployment rate for people aged 15 years and above stood at 5.1% in March, up from 4.9% in February, according to the latest monthly bulletin of the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) released by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation.

The increase was largely driven by urban areas, where the jobless rate ticked up to 6.8% from 6.6% a month earlier.

The labour force participation rate (LFPR), a measure of people either working or seeking work, fell to 55.4% in March from 55.9% in February.

The decline was more pronounced among women, with female LFPR slipping to 34.4% from 35.3%.

In rural areas, female participation remained relatively higher at 38.9%, compared with 25.2% in urban regions.

The worker population ratio (WPR), which reflects the proportion of employed people, stood at 52.6% in March, largely unchanged from the previous month.

Urban WPR remained stable at 46.8%, while rural WPR eased to 55.5% from 56.3% in February.

Overall, urban labour market indicators showed limited movement during the month, suggesting stability in employment conditions despite the slight uptick in unemployment.

Among rural women, the unemployment rate remained largely unchanged, while male unemployment in rural areas edged up slightly, the report said.

The March estimates were based on responses from 375,262 individuals, including 213,984 in rural areas and 161,278 in urban regions.