India has taken a major step towards real-time employment monitoring with the release of its first-ever monthly job data. According to the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI), the country’s unemployment rate stood at 5.1 per cent in April 2025 for individuals aged 15 years and above. This new monthly data comes from the revamped Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS), which now provides more frequent and detailed insights into the nation’s labour market, a shift from the earlier practice of quarterly and annual releases.
The unemployment rate for men was slightly higher at 5.2 per cent, while for women it was 5.0 per cent. The data is based on the Current Weekly Status (CWS) method, which measures employment activity during the seven days preceding the survey date. This approach is intended to give a more accurate and up-to-date picture of joblessness across the country.
A closer look at the numbers reveals that unemployment among the youth remains a significant concern. For the age group of 15 to 29 years, the unemployment rate was much higher at 13.8 per cent. Urban youth faced even greater challenges, with a jobless rate of 17.2 per cent, compared to 12.3 per cent in rural areas. Among young women, the situation was more stark: the national unemployment rate for females aged 15–29 was 14.4 per cent, and in urban areas it soared to 23.7 per cent, while in rural regions it was 10.7 per cent.
Urban Rural Divide
The new PLFS data also highlights a clear urban-rural divide. The overall urban unemployment rate was 6.5 per cent, while rural areas recorded a lower rate of 4.5 per cent. In urban India, female unemployment was significantly higher at 8.7 per cent compared to 5.8 per cent for males. In rural areas, the trend was reversed, with female unemployment at 3.9 per cent and male unemployment at 4.9 per cent.
Labour force participation, which indicates the share of the population that is working, seeking work, or available for work, stood at 55.6 per cent in April 2025. This rate was higher in rural areas (58 per cent) than in urban areas (50.7 per cent). For males aged 15 and above, participation was 79 per cent in rural areas and 75.3 per cent in urban centres. Among females, the participation rate was much lower, at 38.2 per cent in rural India.
The Worker Population Ratio (WPR), which measures the proportion of employed persons in the total population, was 52.8 per cent at the national level. Rural areas again showed stronger figures, with a WPR of 55.4 per cent compared to 47.4 per cent in urban regions. For females aged 15 and above, the WPR was 36.8 per cent in rural areas and only 23.5 per cent in urban areas, resulting in a national average of 32.5 per cent for women.
The first monthly PLFS survey covered 89,434 households across the country, including both rural and urban areas, and collected responses from nearly 3.8 lakh individuals. This large sample size is expected to improve the accuracy and granularity of India’s employment data.
Experts believe that the new monthly data will help policymakers respond more quickly to changes in the job market and design better employment schemes. The government plans to release a comprehensive report covering both urban and rural data in August, further enhancing the country’s ability to monitor and address employment challenges in real time.
