India¡¯s unemployment rate has touched a 45-year-high of 6.1 per cent. The figures were released by the Ministry of Statistics and Program Implementation (MoSPI) after a long delay, possibly due to Lok Sabha elections.
The government came under severe criticism after National Sample Survey Office¡¯s (NSSO) job survey for 2017-18 had shown a spike in the unemployment rate to over 6 per cent, a 45-year high. But the report was buried by the Modi government.
The unemployment rate in the country in FY18 was at 5.3 per cent in rural India and 7.8 per cent in urban India, resulting in overall unemployment rate of 6.1 per cent.
The data was released a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi was sworn-in for his second term. There were serious concerns over joblessness and weak farm prices but BJP won pegging their agenda on nationalism and national security.
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Another set of data released on Friday shows that economy grew at 5.8 per cent in the January-March period its slowest pace in 17 quarters. India¡¯s economic growth fell behind China for the first time in nearly two years.
Females highly unemployed
The data by Labour Ministry also said that female labour participation rate in urban areas for the quarter ending December 2018 was 19.5 per cent, compared with 73.6 per cent for males.
Among the rural men, the unemployment rate was 5.8 per cent while among the women it was 3.8 per cent.?
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For urban men, unemployment rate was 7.8 per cent and 5.7 per cent among urban women.?
The Congress had pitched unemployment and economy as major issues during the campaign for the national elections. Yet, the party faced humiliating defeat winning just 52 seats in the 545-member Lok Sabha.
Post the suppression of NSSO report, leaked by Business Standard, two independent members of the National Statistical Commission had resigned.?