India added 17 crore jobs since 2017-18: Youth unemployment falls; female participation tops 40%
Reserve Bank of India
's KLEMS database.
In a written reply, the minister also highlighted a steady rise in women's participation in the workforce. The Worker Population Ratio (WPR) for women aged 15 and above increased from 28.7% in 2019-20 to 40.3% in 2023-24, based on data from the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS).
The announcement came a day after the labour ministry rebutted a media report questioning the credibility of India's unemployment figures.
The ministry defended the PLFS, calling it 'globally recognized' and aligned with international standards such as those set by the International Labour Organization (ILO).
It also noted that PLFS transitioned to generating monthly estimates from January 2025, enabling more frequent and timely updates on labour market trends. The methodology, the ministry said, uses large-scale stratified random sampling across both urban and rural areas.
Key labour indicators have shown an improving trend:
Labour force participation rate rose from 49.8% (2017–18) to 60.1% (2023–24)
Worker population ratio increased from 46.8% to 58.2%
Unemployment rate dropped from 6% to 3.2%
Youth unemployment rate fell from 17.8% to 10.2% - below the global average of 13.3%
'These improvements signal higher engagement of the working-age population in productive employment,' the ministry said, rejecting claims of rising joblessness, especially among India's youth.
Stay informed with the latest
business
news, updates on
bank holidays
and
public holidays
.
AI Masterclass for Students. Upskill Young Ones Today!– Join Now
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Hindu
6 minutes ago
- The Hindu
Indian economy devastated by five Modi-inflicted shocks: Congress
The Congress on Friday (August 1, 2025) claimed that the Indian economy has been well and truly devastated by a series of "five Modi-inflicted shocks", and said the government, as well as its cheerleaders, are being economical with the truth of the real state of the economy. Congress general secretary in charge of communications, Jairam Ramesh, said the Modi government, its drumbeaters and cheerleaders are living in a make-believe world. The Opposition party's assertions came a day after former Congress President and Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, said everybody except Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman knows that the country's economy is "dead". Over the past decade, the Indian economy has been well and truly devastated by a series of five Modi-inflicted shocks. Nobody else can be held responsible. Demonetisation completely disrupted our growth momentum and destroyed the livelihoods of crores of Indians. A… — Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) August 1, 2025 In a post on X, Mr. Ramesh said, "Over the past decade, the Indian economy has been well and truly devastated by a series of five Modi-inflicted shocks. Nobody else can be held responsible." He said demonetisation completely disrupted our growth momentum and destroyed the livelihoods of crores of Indians. "A fundamentally flawed GST--that is a Tax that is neither Good nor Simple--has wreaked havoc on thousands of business enterprises across the country, except the large companies who can afford to pay the cost associated with GST compliance," Ramesh said. He further claimed that the record imports from China have led to the closure of lakhs of MSMEs across the country in — Gujarat alone, around a third of the MSMEs in the stainless steel industry have shut down their operations. Exports in key areas are dependent on imports of raw materials, components, and intermediates from China, he said. Mr. Ramesh pointed out that private investment has lost the buoyancy it demonstrated during 2004-14. "Indian industrialists are acquiring citizenship of other countries in an ever-increasing measure. The politically motivated and extortionist Raid Raj, coupled with the proliferation of Modani's tentacles, has led to a loss of confidence in the Indian economy," Mr. Ramesh alleged. He argued that wages for the majority of Indians have stagnated in the last decade, across sectors and across classes. "This is particularly so in rural India. Household savings have fallen sharply just as household debt has ballooned. Private mass consumption, one of the key drivers of growth, is sputtering just as luxury consumption has not ebbed, clearly pointing to sharpening economic inequalities," the Congress leader said. "The Modi government, its drumbeaters and cheerleaders are living in a make-believe world. They are being economical with the truth of the real state of the economy," Mr. Ramesh said. On Thursday, Mr. Gandhi had alleged that the BJP-led government has destroyed the country's economic, defence and foreign policies, and is "running the country to the ground". Speaking with reporters in the Parliament House complex, Mr. Gandhi had also claimed that a trade deal with the US will happen and US President Donald Trump will define it. Asked about Trump calling the Indian economy "dead", the Congress leader had said, "He is right, everybody knows this except the prime minister and the finance minister. Everybody knows that the Indian economy is a dead economy. I am glad that President Trump has stated a fact." He had alleged that the BJP has destroyed the Indian economy.
Mint
6 minutes ago
- Mint
Microsoft researchers name 40 white-collar jobs AI is most likely to steal: Is yours on the list?
Since the mass adoption of generative in late 2022, there has been a growing fear among the masses that the new technology will lead to large scale layoffs and even changing of work as we know it. More recently, business leaders have openly started proclaiming that AI will lead to job lossess even if they don't know which jobs will be lost exactly. Amazon CEO Andy Jassy for instance publicly stated that artificial intelligence will lead to reduction in the company's workforce in the coming years owing to efficiency gains. Meanwhile, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang recently stated, 'Everybody's jobs will be affected. Some jobs will be lost. Many jobs will be created and what I hope is that the productivity gains that we see in all the industries will lift society,' A new Microsoft study, however, gives us an insight into exactly which jobs are at the most risk due to artificial intelligence. The researchers analyzed 200,000 conversations between Microsoft's Copilot AI and users in order to find out the most common activities that people use AI to perform. It found that knowledge workers like Historians, Writers and Authors, CNC Tool Programmers, Brokerage Clerks, Political Scientists, Reporters and Journalists are at most risk of being threatened by AI. Moreover, the researchers point out that having a college degree may not help protect these jobs from being eliminated. 'In terms of education requirements, we find higher AI applicability for occupations requiring a Bachelor's degree than occupations with lower requirements' the researchers state. Interpreters and Translators Sales Representatives of Services Customer Service Representatives Ticket Agents and Travel Clerks Broadcast Announcers and Radio DJs Farm and Home Management Educators News Analysts, Reporters, Journalists Proofreaders and Copy Markers Business Teachers, Postsecondary Public Relations Specialists Demonstrators and Product Promoters Counter and Rental Clerks Personal Financial Advisors Economics Teachers, Postsecondary Public Safety Telecommunicators Library Science Teachers, Postsecondary Water Treatment Plant and System Operators Foundry Mold and Coremakers Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators Floor Sanders and Finishers Logging Equipment Operators
India Today
6 minutes ago
- India Today
New tax rules coming soon. How the Income Tax Bill 2025 could impact you
A new income tax law is on the way. Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is expected to table the much-talked-about Income Tax Bill, 2025 in Parliament on August 11. This move could replace the current Income Tax Act of 1961, which has been in use for over 60 NEW IN THE INCOME TAX BILL, 2025?This new law aims to make income tax rules easier to understand, reduce legal disputes, and help people comply with tax rules more easily. The current Act is bulky, with over 5.12 lakh words, but the new Bill has been trimmed to about 2.6 lakh words. The number of sections has been cut down from 819 to 536, and chapters from 47 to the new law includes more tables, 57 compared to 18 earlier, it removes more than 1,200 provisos and 900 explanations, making the document cleaner and easier to read.A BIG CHANGE: SAY GOODBYE TO 'ASSESSMENT YEAR' One of the biggest changes in the new Bill is the introduction of a single 'tax year'. At present, we follow the concept of 'previous year' and 'assessment year', where income earned in one year is taxed in the new Bill wants to do away with this system and tax income in the same year it is earned. This change is meant to bring more clarity and reduce AND EASIER FOR ALLThe Bill also focusses on modernisation. It supports digital paperwork, introduces simpler dispute resolution methods, and aligns Indian tax laws with global standards, especially on international FROM THE SELECT COMMITTEEOn July 21, the Select Committee submitted its detailed report on the draft Income Tax Bill, 2025. The committee examined the proposed legislation and made 285 recommendations, all documented in a comprehensive 4,500-page the key suggestions were updates to certain definitions, such as "capital asset", "infrastructure capital company", and "micro and small enterprises," to ensure they align with other existing laws, reported Business panel also suggested providing more relief to taxpayers and homeowners by proposing a fairer method for calculating deductions on house property it recommended allowing loss carry-forwards even when there are temporary changes in shareholding, which could particularly benefit small investors and and environmentally-conscious businesses were also a focus, with proposals for clearer tax rules on R&D investments, tax relief for firms handling biodegradable waste, and more precise definitions for terms like 'parent company' in legal committee also wants to protect the rights of taxpayers. For example, they suggested keeping the phrase 'in the circumstances of the case' in certain tax avoidance rules, which could help reduce unnecessary legal religious and charitable organisations, they recommended taxing anonymous donations at 30%, but giving full exemptions to purely religious committee has also suggested that people with incomes below the taxable limit, who already have tax deducted (TDS), should not be forced to file tax returns just to get a HAPPENS NEXT?If passed, the Income Tax Bill, 2025, could become India's biggest tax reform in decades. It promises to simplify the entire system, reduce stress for taxpayers, and bring our laws in line with today's economy.- EndsMust Watch
