Urban unemployment rate eases marginally to 6.6% in Jan-March

India’s unemployment rate in urban areas eased marginally to 6.6 per cent during the January-March 2026 quarter from 6.7 per cent in the preceding quarter, according to the latest National Statistics Office Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) recently released.The survey, which covered 5,61,822 persons aged 15 years and above across the country, indicated that overall joblessness in urban areas continued to show a declining trend compared to the previous two quarters.However, unemployment in rural areas edged up slightly to 4.3 per cent during the March quarter from 4.0 per cent in October-December 2025.
The PLFS bulletin noted that the share of regular wage and salaried employees in rural areas increased to 15.5 per cent during January-March 2026 from 14.8 per cent in the previous quarter.At the same time, the proportion of self-employed persons in rural areas declined to 62.5 per cent from 63.2 per cent in the October-December 2025 quarter.In urban areas, the distribution of workers across different employment categories remained broadly stable during the quarter under review.The survey highlighted that employment patterns continued to follow a similar structural trend, with rural workers primarily engaged in the primary sector while urban workers remained concentrated in the tertiary sector.
In rural areas, the share of workers engaged in agriculture fell to 55.8 per cent in January-March 2026 from 58.5 per cent in the previous quarter. Meanwhile, employment in the tertiary sector increased to 21.7 per cent from 20.6 per cent.The secondary sector, including mining and quarrying activities, also recorded an increase in rural areas, rising to 22.6 per cent during the March quarter from 20.9 per cent in the preceding quarter.The report stated that the sectoral distribution of workers in urban areas remained largely unchanged.
Using projected population estimates provided by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the survey estimated that an average of 57.4 crore persons aged 15 years and above were employed across the country during January-March 2026. Of these, 40.2 crore were men and 17.2 crore were women.The Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR) remained broadly steady at 55.5 per cent during the quarter compared with 55.8 per cent in October-December 2025.In rural areas, LFPR stood at 58.2 per cent against 58.4 per cent in the previous quarter, while urban LFPR slipped marginally to 50.2 per cent from 50.4 per cent.The overall female LFPR remained stable at 34.7 per cent during January-March 2026 compared with 34.9 per cent in the preceding quarter. Female LFPR in rural areas was estimated at 39.2 per cent while urban female LFPR stood at 25.4 per cent.The Worker Population Ratio (WPR) at the all-India level was recorded at 52.8 per cent during the March quarter compared to 53.1 per cent in the previous quarter.While rural WPR declined marginally to 55.7 per cent from 56.1 per cent, urban WPR remained largely stable at 46.9 per cent against 47.1 per cent in October-December 2025.

(Business Correspondent)