post covid-19 employment scenario in india

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Post COVID-19 Employment Scenario in India

BibekDebroy*& Chirag Dudani*

I. INTRODUCTION

The world economy is still reeling under the downturn caused by the Covid-19

pandemic. The necessary lockdowns and uncertainty lead to a massive decline in demand

along with throwing the supply chains into disarray. This massively disrupted the business

cycles and substantially shrunk the world economy, causing unprecedented damage in the

21st century to the lives and livelihoods of people.

While the process of recovery is still underway and the pandemic is still ongoing, it is

vital to understand the underlying changes to better respond in terms of measures to be taken.

One of the crucial levers to analyse for an economy, especially one with a high proportion of

young working age population like India, is the ‘Employment Scenario’. While a lot of other

indicators like GDP give crucial insights, but isn’t as effective in assessing the entire

population due to the higher weights of top deciles in the indicator. Employment indicators

cover the entire population and when analysed over a period of time aid in understanding

substantive changes in the overall economic scenario of the population.

One of the challenges in analysing employment scenario is the lack of consistent job

data especially during Covid-19 pandemic. Initially ‘Annual Survey of Employment and

Unemployment’ was carried out by the Labour Bureau1. Subsequently in April

2017,‘National Sample Survey Office (NSSO)’ was entrusted the task to conduct ‘Periodic

Labour Force Surveys (PLFS)’ to have reliable high frequency data for urban areas released

quarterly and annual numbers for both rural and urban areas. The last PLFS results were

published for January to March 2020 for the urban areas2.

The alternative is to use data from a private firm that has continued to publish data

series even during the pandemic period. ‘Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy Private Ltd.

(CMIE)’ using its ‘Consumer Pyramids Household Survey (CPHS)’ publishes monthly

employment indicators at the state level at a regional(rural/urban), educational, age, gender

and other levels. This is important as a national level figure for a diverse country with the 2nd

highest population and wide intra state economic differences masks a lot of varied regional

realties. Hence, it’s important to analyse data at the state level even from an administrative

perspective, further delving to regional, gender, age and educational levels. For rural areas,

it’s also important to look at ‘Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act

(MGNREGA)’ employment figures to understand how effectively it was used by the states

since it acts as a de facto job insurance mechanism.

*The figures were taken for analysis as on the portal on 8 March 2021.

* Chairman and Assistant Consultant respectively of the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister (EAC-PM) 1Annual Report of ‘Ministry of Labour and Employment’ 2017-18 https://labour.gov.in/sites/default/files/ANNUAL_REPORT_2017-18-ENGLISH.pdf 2Ministry of Statistics & Programme Implementation Press Note 4 June 2020 https://pib.gov.in/PressReleaseIframePage.aspx?PRID=1629366

/Users/chiragdudani/Downloads/EACPM/Survey%20(CMIE)/Final%20Report/Annual%20Report%20of%20‘Ministry%20of%20Labour%20and%20Employment’%202017-18%20https:/labour.gov.in/sites/default/files/ANNUAL_REPORT_2017-18-ENGLISH.pdf

/Users/chiragdudani/Downloads/EACPM/Survey%20(CMIE)/Final%20Report/Annual%20Report%20of%20‘Ministry%20of%20Labour%20and%20Employment’%202017-18%20https:/labour.gov.in/sites/default/files/ANNUAL_REPORT_2017-18-ENGLISH.pdf

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II. TABLE OF REFERENCES

1 NSSO National Sample Survey Office

2 PLFS Periodic Labour Force Survey

3 CMIE Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy Private Ltd.

4 CPHS Consumer Pyramids Household Survey

5 MGNREGA Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act

6 UE Unemployment

7 UER Unemployment Rate

8 ER Employment Rate

9 LFPR Labour Force Participation Rate

10 LPR Labour Participation Rate

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III. ANALYSIS OF STATES

1. Andhra Pradesh

Figure 1: Andhra Pradesh Rural

Source: CMIE CPHS Survey

Figure 2: Andhra Pradesh Urban


0

5,00,000

10,00,000

15,00,000

20,00,000

25,00,000

30,00,000

35,00,000

40,00,000

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

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55

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21

MGNREGA (Households Employed in State) India Rural Unemployment RateState Rural Unemployment Rate State Rural Labour Participation Rate

0

5

10

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20

25

30

35

40

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

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Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21

India Urban Unemployment Rate State Urban Unemployment Rtae State Urban Labour Participation Rate

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Figure 3: Andhra Pradesh Rural - Gender Wise


Figure 4: Andhra Pradesh Urban - Gender Wise


0

5

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25

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80

0

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Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21

Male Labor Participation Rate(LPR) Female Labor Participation Rate(LPR) Male Unemployment Rate(UR) Female Unemployment Rate(UR)

UR

LPR

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70

0

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36

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21


UR

LPR

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Figure 5: Andhra Pradesh Rural - Age Wise


Figure 6: Andhra Pradesh Urban - Age Wise


0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

55

Mar-19 Jun-19 Sep-19 Dec-19 Mar-20 Jun-20 Sep-20 Dec-20

Unemployment Rate All ages Unemployment Rate 15-19 years Unemployment Rate 20-24 years Unemployment Rate 25-29 years

Unemployment Rate 30-34 years Unemployment Rate 35-39 years Unemployment Rate 40-44 years Unemployment Rate 45-49 years

Unemployment Rate 50-54 years Unemployment Rate 55-59 years Unemployment Rate 60-64 years Unemployment Rate >=65 years

0

10

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80





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Figure 7: Andhra Pradesh - Education Level Wise


Andhra Pradesh’s rural UER peaked at 16.4% in April 2020 (figure 1), though still

below national average. Effective use of MGNREGA, which saw a marked increase

post Aril, was vital in bringing down rural UER to 7.7% in July 2020. Rural UE in the

state has nearly come down to pre-Covid levels with a 3.3% rural UER in February

2021 but LPR was still below the earlier levels, indicating a decrease in rural labour

force. April- May 2020 (figure 3) saw a peak in both male and female UER in rural

part, with a fall in LPR in both categories. There was a wide gap between male and

female LPR with female LPR being nearly a fifth of male LPR at 13.7% and 67.5%

respectively in February 2021.

A similar peak of 32.3% urban UER was seen in April 2020 (figure 2), higher than the

national average of 24.95% at the time. Urban UER and LPR have stabilised to pre-

Covid levels. An even wider gap in male and female LPR was seen in the urban areas,

with female LPR at 8.7% in February 2021 compared to 64% male LPR. Low female

LPR in both rural as well as urban areas indicate the potential of economic

improvements both at the state and the household levels if concerted efforts are made

in this direction.

There was a high incidence of youth UE in both rural as well as urban areas, with

especially high rates in the age brackets between 15-24 years (figure 5 and 6). The

levels though high improve at 25-29 years. UER at the education level of ‘Graduate&

above’ seems to be a major challenge with their UER at 26.11% in February 2021,

significantly higher than sub 5% UER at other educational levels.

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-

19

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-1

9

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-

20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-

20

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-2

0

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-

21

Unemployment Rate - All educational levels Unemployment Rate - No education Unemployment Rate - Upto class V

Unemployment Rate - Class VI-IX Unemployment Rate - Class X-XII Unemployment Rate - Graduate & above

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2. Assam

Figure 8: Assam Rural


Figure 9: Assam Urban


0

1,00,000

2,00,000

3,00,000

4,00,000

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Mar-1

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Apr-19

May-1

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Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21

MGNREGA (Households Employed in State) India Rural Unemployment Rate

State Rural Unemployment Rate State Rural Labour Participation Rate

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

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Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

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Feb-21


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Figure 10: AssamRural - Gender Wise


Figure11: Assam Urban - Gender Wise


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Mar-1

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Jun-1

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Jul-1

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Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

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Feb-21


UR

LPR

0

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Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21


UR

LPR

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Figure12: Assam Rural - Age Wise


Figure13: AssamUrban - Age Wise


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Figure14: Assam - Education Level Wise


Assam’srural UER peaked at 9.38% in May 2020 (figure 8), though less than

half of national average. Rural UE in the state has come down below pre-Covid levels

with a 1.52% rural UER in February 2021. Rural LPR has varied widely across the

months with no particular trend, the February figure being 43.71%. There was a lot of

variation in female rural LPR going as high 34% in September 2020 to nearly a fourth

at 7.59% in February 2021(figure 10). There was a wide gap between male and female

LPR.

Urban UER has generally been high even pre-Covid, hovering at over 10%, with

a peak of 24.95% seen in April 2020 (figure 9), even though lower than the national

average of 24.95% at the time. Urban UER have surprisingly fallen below pre-Covid

levels at 2.41% in February 2021, though this was in the backdrop of a near 3% fall in

LPR compared to the previous year.Female LPR was lower in urban areas with it being

8.4% in February 2021 compared to a 73% male LPR at the time(figure 11).

There was a high incidence of youth UE in both rural as well as urban areas,

with especially high rates in the age brackets between ‘15-24 years’ (figure 12 and 13).

These levels surprisingly see a fall in recent quarters in urban areas.

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-

19

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-1

9

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-

20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-

20

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-2

0

Oct-2

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Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-

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3. Bihar

Figure15: Bihar Rural


Figure16: Bihar Urban


0

2,50,000

5,00,000

7,50,000

10,00,000

12,50,000

15,00,000

17,50,000

20,00,000

0

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10

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Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

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Jun-1

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Jul-1

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Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

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Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21



0

10

20

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40

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60

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21


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Figure17: Bihar Rural - Gender Wise


Figure18: Bihar Urban - Gender Wise


0

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75

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68

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76

78

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21


UR

LPR

0

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Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

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Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

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Feb-21


UR

LPR

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Figure19: Bihar Rural - Age Wise


Figure20: Bihar Urban - Age Wise


0

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Figure21: Bihar - Education Level Wise


Bihar’s rural UER peaked at a striking 47.26% in May2020 (figure 15), more

than double national average at the time at 21%. Effective use of MGNREGA, which

saw a marked increase post Aril, contributed in bringing down rural UER to 12% in

July 2020. Rural UE in the state has nearly come down to pre-Covid levels with a

11.2% rural UER in February 2021 but LPR was still marginally below the earlier

levels. State rural UE continues to be significantly higher than national average.Rural

female LPR was exceptionally low at sub 4% rates (figure 17). There was a wide gap

between male and female LPR with female LPR being a fraction of male LPR at2.2%

and 63% respectively in February 2021.

Urban UER has generally been high even pre-Covid, hovering around 15%, with

a peak of 58.77% seen in April 2020 (figure 16), more than double the national

average of 24.95% at the time. Though urban UER has stabilised to pre-Covid levels,

labour force has shrunk by 3% compared to last year. A similar gap in male and female

LPR was seen in the urban areas, with female LPR at 3.3% in February 2021 compared

to 62.8% male LPR(figure 19). Extremely low female LPR in both rural as well as

urban areas indicate the potential of economic improvements both at the state and the

household levels if concerted efforts are made in this direction.


with especially high rates in the age brackets between 15-24 years, with these levels

are higher than pre-Covid in urban areas (figure 20 and 21). ç, indicating the lack of

white-collar employment opportunities in the state.

0

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30

40

50

60

70

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-

19

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

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Aug-19

Sep-1

9

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

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Feb-

20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-

20

Jun-2

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Jul-2

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Aug-20

Sep-2

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Oct-2

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Nov-20

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Jan-2

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Feb-

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4. Chhattisgarh

Figure 22: Chhattisgarh Rural


Figure 23: Chhattisgarh Urban


0

2,50,000

5,00,000

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10,00,000

12,50,000

15,00,000

17,50,000

20,00,000

0

5

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30

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40

45

50

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21



0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21


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Figure 24: Chhattisgarh Rural - Gender Wise


Figure 25: Chhattisgarh Urban - Gender Wise


0

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80

0

2

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10

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22

24

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30

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34

36

38

40

42

44

46

48

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21


UR

LPR

0

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Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21


UR

LPR

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Figure 26: Chhattisgarh Rural - Age Wise


Figure 27: Chhattisgarh Urban - Age Wise


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Figure 28: Chhattisgarh - Education Level Wise


Chhattisgarh’s rural UER peaked at 12.37% in April 2020 (figure 22), almost

double national average of 6.5% at the time. Rural UE in the state has come down to

pre-Covid levels with a 6% rural UER in February 2021 but LPR was 4% lower than

the previous year, indicating a decrease in rural labour force. Female LPR in rural

areas remains low at 8.55% compared to 69% male LPR in February 2021(figure 24).

A peak of 25.73% urban UER was seen in June 2020 (figure 23), more than

double the national average of 11.68% at the time. Urban UER has stabilised to pre-

Covid levels, but the LPR has shrunk by over 4% compared to the previous year.

Female LPR at 14.22% in February 2021 was better than rural areas, but far lower than

urban male LPR of 69.34% at the time(figure 25). Urban female LPR has decreased by

over 4% compared to last year.

There was a high incidence of youth UE in both rural as well as urban areas

(figure 26 and 27). The levels at the ‘20-24 year’ bracket was higher than pre-

pandemic figure in the rural areas. UER at the education level of ‘Graduate & above’

seems to be a major challenge with their UER at 26.16% in February 2021, more than

double compared to the last year.

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-

19

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-1

9

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-

20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-

20

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-2

0

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-

21



of 82

5. Gujarat

Figure 29: Gujarat Rural


Figure 30: Gujarat Urban


0

50,000

1,00,000

1,50,000

2,00,000

2,50,000

3,00,000

3,50,000

4,00,000

4,50,000

5,00,000

5,50,000

6,00,000

6,50,000

7,00,000

7,50,000

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

55

60

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21



0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21


of 82

Figure 31: Gujarat Rural - Gender Wise


Figure 32: Gujarat Urban - Gender Wise


0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

55

60

65

70

75

80

85

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21


UR

LPR

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

55

60

65

70

75

80

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

18

20

22

24

26

28

30

32

34

36

38

40

42

44

46

48

50

52

54

56

58

60

62

64

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21


UR

LPR

of 82

Figure 33: Gujarat Rural - Age Wise


Figure 34: Gujarat Urban - Age Wise


0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

55





0

10

20

30

40

50

60





of 82

Figure 35: Gujarat - Education Level Wise


Gujarat’s rural UER peaked at 12.56% in May 2020 (figure 29), though below

the national average of 21.11% at the time. A subsequent increase in MGNREGA

employment provided was accompanied by rural UER coming down. Rural UE was at

3% in February 2021, less than half the rate of the previous year, though this was in the

backdrop of rural LPR falling by over 4% compared to the previous year. Rural female

LPR at 23.3 % in February 2021 was higher than the national average, but still a third

of rural male LPRat 72.79% (figure 31).

A peak of 25.94% urban UER was seen in April 2020 (figure 30). Urban UER

has fallen below pre-Covid levels at 3.35% in February 2021 compared to 6% in

February 2020, though this was coupled with an over 3% fall in LPR compared to the

previous year. Female LPR in urban areas at 8.17% in February 2021was lower than

the rural areas, and was also nearly 6% below the same figure in the previous year

(figure 32).

Like the rest of the country, therewas a high incidence of youth UE in both rural

as well as urban areas, but these levels have come down below the pandemic figures in

rural areas, while the UER ‘15-19 year’ bracket was higher than before in urban areas

(figure 33 and 34). Though lower than national average, UER at the level of ‘Graduate

& above’ remains higher than other education level brackets, even though it has

decreased by over 7% in the last year.

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-

19

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-1

9

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-

20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-

20

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-2

0

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-

21



of 82

6. Haryana

Figure 36: Haryana Rural


Figure 37: Haryana Urban


0

20,000

40,000

60,000

80,000

1,00,000

1,20,000

1,40,000

1,60,000

1,80,000

2,00,000

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

55

60

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21



0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21


of 82

Figure 38: Haryana Rural - Gender Wise


Figure 39: Haryana Urban - Gender Wise


0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

55

60

65

70

75

80

02468

10121416182022242628303234363840424446485052545658606264666870727476788082848688

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21


UR

LPR

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

55

60

65

70

75

02468

101214161820222426283032343638404244464850525456586062646668707274767880828486889092

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21


UR

LPR

of 82

Figure 40: Haryana Rural - Age Wise


Figure 41: Haryana Urban - Age Wise


0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

55

60

65

70

75

80

85

90

95

100

105





0

20

40

60

80

100

120





of 82

Figure 42: Haryana - Education Level Wise


Haryana’srural UER peaked at 41.61% in May 2020 (figure 36), nearly double

national average at the time at 22.89%. An increase in MGNREGA employment,

which saw a marked increase post Aril, was crucial in bringing down rural UER to

17.62% in June 2020. Rural UE though at nearly pre-Covid levels, continues to remain

significantly higher than the national average with a 29.62% rural UER in February

2021.Rural LPR was 2% below the previous year. Rural female LPR was less than a

tenth of male LPR at 6.54% in February 2021, along with a striking 77% female UER

at the time (figure 38).

Similar to rural areas, urban UER has generally been high even pre-Covid,

hovering over20%, with a peak of 46.89% seen in April 2020 (figure 37), nearly

double the national average of 24.95% at the time. Though still more than double the

national average, urban UER has come down 3% below pre-Covid levels in the

backdrop of labour force shrinking by 5% compared to last year. A similar gap in to

rural male and female LPR was seen in the urban areas, with female LPR at 6.56% in

February 2021 compared to 61.25% male LPR (figure 39), along with 63% female

UER at the time. Extremely low female LPR in both rural as well as urban areas

indicate the potential of economic improvements both at the state and the household

levels if concerted efforts are made in this direction.


with especially high rates in the age brackets between ‘15-24 years’, with UER in ‘15-

19 years’ bracket higher than pre-Covid levels (figure 40 and 41). Like rest of the

country, UER at the education level of graduates and matriculationwas higher than

other education levels, at 32.44% and 28.9% respectively in February 2021.

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-

19

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-1

9

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-

20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-

20

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-2

0

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-

21



of 82

7. Jharkhand

Figure 43: Jharkhand Rural


Figure 44: Jharkhand Urban


0

50,000

1,00,000

1,50,000

2,00,000

2,50,000

3,00,000

3,50,000

4,00,000

4,50,000

5,00,000

5,50,000

6,00,000

6,50,000

7,00,000

7,50,000

8,00,000

8,50,000

9,00,000

9,50,000

10,00,000

10,50,000

11,00,000

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

55

60

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21



0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21


of 82

Figure 45: Jharkhand Rural - Gender Wise


Figure 46: Jharkhand Urban - Gender Wise


0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

55

60

65

70

75

80

02468

101214161820222426283032343638404244464850525456586062646668707274767880828486889092949698

100102104106

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21


UR

LPR

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

55

60

65

70

75

80

02468

101214161820222426283032343638404244464850525456586062646668707274767880828486889092

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21


UR

LPR

of 82

Figure 47: Jharkhand Rural - Age Wise


Figure 48: Jharkhand Urban - Age Wise


0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

55

60

65

70

75

80

85

90

95





0

20

40

60

80

100

120





of 82

Figure 49: Jharkhand - Education Level Wise


Jharkhand’s rural UER peaked at 55% in May 2020 (figure 43), more than

double national average of 21.1% at the time. Effective use of MGNREGA, which saw

a marked increase in May-June 2020 contributed to decrease in rural UER to 7.79% in

September 2020. Rural UE in the state has come down nearly to pre-Covid levels with

a 10.82% rural UER in February 2021with a marginally lower LPR. Similar to pre-

Covid period, female LPR in rural areas was almost negligible at 1.85% in February

2021and a fraction of male LPR at 75.25% at the time (figure 45).

Urban UER also peakedat70.17% in May 2020 (figure 44), more than thrice the

national average of 23% at the time. Urban UER has stabilised to pre-Covid levels, but

the LPR has shrunk by over 4% compared to the previous year. Similar to rural areas,

female LPRwas negligible at 2.13% in February 2021, a 2% decrease compared to the

previous year (figure 46). Insignificant female LPR in both rural as well as urban areas



There was a very high incidence of youth UE in both rural as well as urban

areas, especially in the age bracket of ‘19-24 years’ (figure 47 and 48). UER at the

education level of graduationand matriculation continues to remain high with their

UER at 26.88% and 17.39% in February 2021 (figure 49).

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-

19

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-1

9

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-

20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-

20

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-2

0

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-

21



of 82

8. Karnataka

Figure 50: Karnataka Rural


Figure 51: Karnataka Urban


0

50,000

1,00,000

1,50,000

2,00,000

2,50,000

3,00,000

3,50,000

4,00,000

4,50,000

5,00,000

5,50,000

6,00,000

6,50,000

7,00,000

7,50,000

8,00,000

8,50,000

9,00,000

9,50,000

10,00,000

10,50,000

11,00,000

11,50,000

12,00,000

12,50,000

13,00,000

13,50,000

14,00,000

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

55

60

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21



0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21


of 82

Figure 52: Karnataka Rural - Gender Wise


Figure 53: Karnataka Urban - Gender Wise


0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

55

60

65

70

75

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

18

20

22

24

26

28

30

32

34

36

38

40

42

44

46

48

50

52

54

56

58

60

62

64

66

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21


UR

LPR

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

55

60

65

70

75

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

18

20

22

24

26

28

30

32

34

36

38

40

42

44

46

48

50

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21


UR

LPR

of 82

Figure 54: Karnataka Rural - Age Wise


Figure 55: Karnataka Urban - Age Wise


0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

55

60

65

70

75

80

85

90

95

100

105





0

20

40

60

80

100

120





of 82

Figure 56: Karnataka - Education Level Wise


Karnataka’s rural UER peaked at 33.17% in May 2020 (figure 50). A subsequent

increase in MGNREGA employment contributed in rural UER decreasing significantly

to 4.61% in July 2020. Rural UERwas at 2.53% in February 2021, lower than 4.11%in

February 2020, and in the backdrop of marginally higher rural LPR. Rural female LPR

at 16.93 %, though higher than national average and 7% higher than previous year, was

still a quarter of rural male LPR in February 2021 (figure 52).

A peak of 25.12% urban UER was seen in April 2020, nearly the same as

national average at the time (figure 51). Urban UER has stabilised at pre-Covid levels

at 2.45% in February 2021, far below the national average, though this was coupled

with a nearly 3% fall in LPR compared to the previous year. Female LPR in urban

areas at 3.84% in February 2021wassignificantly lower than the rural areas, and a

fraction of urban male LPR at 63% at the time (figure 53).

Like the rest of the country, there was a high incidence of youth UE in both rural

as well as urban areas, especially in the age bracket of ‘15-24 years’, with the UER

‘15-19 year’ bracket higher than pre-Covid(figure 54 and 55). Though far lower than

national average, UER at the level of ‘Graduate & above’ at 8.36% in February 2021,

remains higher than other education level brackets.

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-

19

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-1

9

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-

20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-

20

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-2

0

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-

21



of 82

9. Kerala

Figure 57: Kerala Rural


Figure 58: Kerala Urban


0

5,00,000

10,00,000

15,00,000

20,00,000

25,00,000

30,00,000

35,00,000

40,00,000

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

55

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21

MGNREGA (Households Employed in State) India Rural Unemployment RateState Rural Unemployment Rate State Rural Labour Participation Rate

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21


of 82

Figure 59: Kerala Rural - Gender Wise


Figure 60: Kerala Urban - Gender Wise


0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

55

60

65

70

75

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

18

20

22

24

26

28

30

32

34

36

38

40

42

44

46

48

50

52

54

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21


UR

LPR

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

55

60

65

70

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

18

20

22

24

26

28

30

32

34

36

38

40

42

44

46

48

50

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21


UR

LPR

of 82

Figure 61: Kerala Rural - Age Wise


Figure 62: Kerala Urban - Age Wise


0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

55

60

65

70

75

80

85

90

95

100

105





0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100





of 82

Figure 63: Kerala - Education Level Wise


Kerala’s rural UER peaked at 15% in May 2020 (figure 57), though below

national average of 21.1% at the time. Rural UE in the state has come down below pre-

Covid levels with a 4.43% rural UER in February 2021, though this was accompanied

by rural LPR shrinking by 4% in the same period. Rural female LPR at 6.18% in

February 2021, was less than a tenth of the male LPR at the time, and was also nearly

4% lower than the previous year(figure 59).

Urban UER also peaked in May 2020 at 21.54%, marginally below national

average at the time (figure 58). Urban UER has stabilised at marginally below pre-

Covid levels at 4.16% in February 2021, although in the backdrop of urban LPR

shrinking by nearly 3% compared to previous year. Like in rural areas, there was wide

gap between male and female LPR, at 6.57% and 59.95% respectively in February

2021 (figure 60). Low female LPR in both rural as well as urban areas indicate the

potential of economic improvements both at the state and the household levels if

concerted efforts are made in this direction.


as well as urban areas, with especially high rates in the age brackets between ‘15-24

years’, with these rates being higher than pre-pandemic levels in urban areas (figure 61

and 62). UER at the level of ‘Graduate & above’ remains higher than other education

level brackets (figure 63).

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-

19

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-1

9

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-

20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-

20

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-2

0

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-

21



of 82

10. Madhya Pradesh

Figure 64: Madhya Pradesh Rural


Figure 65: Madhya Pradesh Urban


0

2,00,000

4,00,000

6,00,000

8,00,000

10,00,000

12,00,000

14,00,000

16,00,000

18,00,000

20,00,000

22,00,000

24,00,000

26,00,000

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21



0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21


of 82

Figure 66: Madhya Pradesh Rural - Gender Wise


Figure 67: Madhya Pradesh Urban - Gender Wise


0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

55

60

65

70

75

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

18

20

22

24

26

28

30

32

34

36

38

40

42

44

46

48

50

52

54

56

58

60

62

64

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21


UR

LPR

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

55

60

65

70

75

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

18

20

22

24

26

28

30

32

34

36

38

40

42

44

46

48

50

52

54

56

58

60

62

64

66

68

70

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21


UR

LPR

of 82

Figure 68: Madhya Pradesh Rural - Age Wise


Figure 69: Madhya Pradesh Urban - Age Wise


0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

55

60

65





0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100





of 82

Figure 70: Madhya Pradesh - Education Level Wise


Madhya Pradesh’s rural UER peaked at 22.41% in May 2020 (figure 64),

marginally above national average of 21.1% at the time. Rural UER at 1.47% in

February 2021was less than half of the pre-Covid levels in the previous year, though

this was accompanied by rural LPR shrinking by over 2% in the same period. Rural

female LPR has generally been low and was at 2.64% in February 2021, far below the

rural male LPR at 65.59% at the time (figure 66).

Urban UER also peaked in May 2020 at 20.89%, although below national

average at the time (figure 65). Urban UER has stabilised at marginally below pre-

Covid levels at 3.52% in February 2021, with a relatively similar urban LPR

levelcompared to previous year. Like in rural areas, there was wide gap between male

and female LPR (figure 67). Low female LPR in both rural as well as urban areas





years’, with UER being higher than pre-pandemic levels for ‘15-19 years’ bracket

(figure 68 and 69). UER at the level of ‘Graduate & above’, though lower than national

average, remains higher than other education level brackets (figure 70).

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-

19

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-1

9

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-

20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-

20

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-2

0

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-

21



of 82

11. Maharashtra

Figure 71: Maharashtra Rural


Figure 72: Maharashtra Urban


0

50,000

1,00,000

1,50,000

2,00,000

2,50,000

3,00,000

3,50,000

4,00,000

4,50,000

5,00,000

5,50,000

6,00,000

6,50,000

7,00,000

7,50,000

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

55

60

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21



0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21


of 82

Figure73: Maharashtra Rural - Gender Wise


Figure 74: Maharashtra Urban - Gender Wise


0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

55

60

65

70

75

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

18

20

22

24

26

28

30

32

34

36

38

40

42

44

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21


UR

LPR

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

55

60

65

70

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

18

20

22

24

26

28

30

32

34

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21


UR

LPR

of 82

Figure 75: Maharashtra Rural - Age Wise


Figure 76: Maharashtra Urban - Age Wise


0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50





0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100





of 82

Figure 77: Maharashtra - Education Level Wise


Maharashtra’s rural UER peaked at 25.28% in April 2020, higher than the

national average at 22.89% at the time (figure 71). A significant increase in

MGNREGA employment from May 2020 contributed in rural UER decreasing

significantly to 3.16% in July 2020. Rural UER has stabilised at pre-Covid levels and

was at 3.23% in February 2021, with a similar rural LPR to the previous year. Rural

female LPR at 29.38 % in February 2021, though significantly higher than national

average, was still less than half of rural male LPR at 68.79% February 2021 (figure

73).

A peak of 15.15% urban UER was seen in May 2020, lower than national

average at23.14% at the time (figure 72). Urban UER has stabilised at pre-Covid levels

at 4.77% in February 2021, though with marginally lower LPR compared to the

previous year. Female LPR in urban areas at 9.73% in February 2021was significantly

lower than the rural areas, and nearly a sixth of urban male LPR at 60.65% at the time

(figure 74).


as well as urban areas, especially in the age bracket of ‘15-24 years’, though it was

lower than the pre-pandemic figures (figure 75 and 76). UER at the level of ‘Graduate

& above’ remains higher than other education level brackets at 15.53% in February

2021.

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-

19

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-1

9

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-

20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-

20

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-2

0

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-

21



of 82

12. Odisha

Figure 78: Odisha Rural


Figure 79: Odisha Urban


050,0001,00,0001,50,0002,00,0002,50,0003,00,0003,50,0004,00,0004,50,0005,00,0005,50,0006,00,0006,50,0007,00,0007,50,0008,00,0008,50,0009,00,0009,50,00010,00,00010,50,00011,00,00011,50,00012,00,00012,50,00013,00,00013,50,00014,00,00014,50,00015,00,00015,50,00016,00,000

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

55

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21



0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21


of 82

Figure 80: Odisha Rural - Gender Wise


Figure 81: Odisha Urban - Gender Wise


0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

55

60

65

70

75

80

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

18

20

22

24

26

28

30

32

34

36

38

40

42

44

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21


UR

LPR

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

55

60

65

70

75

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

18

20

22

24

26

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21


UR

LPR

of 82

Figure 82: Odisha Rural - Age Wise


Figure 83: Odisha Urban - Age Wise


0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

55





0

5

10

15

20

25

30





of 82

Figure 84: Odisha - Education Level Wise


Odisha’s rural UER peaked at 24.48% in April 2020 (figure 78), marginally

higher than the national average of 22.89% at the time. A subsequent significant


to 4.22% in June 2020. Rural UER was at 2.33% in February 2021, lower than pre-

Covid 3.31% in February 2020, though in the backdrop of marginally lower rural LPR.

Rural female LPR at 4.63% in February 2021 was a fraction of rural male LPR at 72%

at the time (figure 80).

Urban UER also peaked in April 2020 at 20.5%, below national average at the

time (figure 79). Urban UER has stabilised at nearly pre-Covid levels at 3.12% in

February 2021, although in the backdrop of urban LPR shrinking by nearly 3%

compared to previous year. Like in rural areas, there was wide gap between male and

female LPR, at 5% and 63.78% respectively in February 2021 (figure 81). Low female



in this direction.



years’, with these rates being lower than pre-pandemic levels in urban areas (figure 82

and 83). UER at the level of ‘Graduate & above’ though lower than national average,

remains higher than other education level brackets (figure 84).

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-

19

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-1

9

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-

20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-

20

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-2

0

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-

21



of 82

13. Punjab

Figure 85: Punjab Rural


Figure 86: Punjab Urban


0

50,000

1,00,000

1,50,000

2,00,000

2,50,000

3,00,000

3,50,000

4,00,000

4,50,000

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

55

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21



0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21


of 82

Figure 87: Punjab Rural - Gender Wise


Figure 88: Punjab Urban - Gender Wise


0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

55

60

65

70

75

80

85

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

18

20

22

24

26

28

30

32

34

36

38

40

42

44

46

48

50

52

54

56

58

60

62

64

66

68

70

72

74

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21


UR

LPR

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

55

60

65

70

75

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

18

20

22

24

26

28

30

32

34

36

38

40

42

44

46

48

50

52

54

56

58

60

62

64

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21


UR

LPR

of 82

Figure 89: Punjab Rural - Age Wise


Figure 90: Punjab Urban - Age Wise


0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

55

60

65

70

75

80

85

90





0

5

10

15

20

25

30





of 82

Figure 91: Punjab- Education Level Wise


Punjab’s rural UER peaked at 34% in May 2020 (figure 85), higher than the

national average of 21.1% at the time. Effective use of MGNREGA, which saw a

marked increase in May-June 2020 contributed to decrease in rural UER to 9.78% in

August 2020. Rural UE in the state has come down marginally below pre-Covid levels

with a 8.36% rural UER in February 2021, but the rural LPR has shrunk by over 7%

compared to the previous year. Female LPR in rural areas was almost negligible at

3.08% in February 2021, over 5% lower than the previous year, and a fraction of male

LPR at 72.25% at the time (figure 87).

Urban UER also peaked at 17.47% in May 2020 (figure 86), though lower than

the national average of 23.14% at the time. Urban UER was at 4.81%in February 2021

less than half the urban UER in February 2020, though the urban LPR has shrunk by

over 8% compared to the previous year. Similar to rural areas, female LPR was

negligible at 2.41% in February 2021, a 5% decrease compared to the previous year

(figure 88). Insignificant female LPR in both rural as well as urban areas indicate the




especially in the age bracket of ‘15-24 years’ in rural areas and ’25-29 years’ bracket

in urban areas, which has increased post the pandemic (figure 89 and 90). UE at the

education level of graduation continues to remain high with their UER at 15.82% in

February 2021 (figure 91).

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-

19

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-1

9

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-

20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-

20

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

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0

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0

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14. Rajasthan

Figure 92: Rajasthan Rural


Figure 93: Rajasthan Urban


0

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0

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Nov-19

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Jan-2

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of 82

Figure 94: Rajasthan Rural - Gender Wise


Figure 95: Rajasthan Urban - Gender Wise


0

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Mar-1

9

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May-1

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Jun-1

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Jul-1

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Aug-19

Sep-19

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9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

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Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

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UR

LPR

0

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02468

101214161820222426283032343638404244464850525456586062646668707274767880828486889092

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

9

Jun-1

9

Jul-1

9

Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

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Nov-19

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Jan-2

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Feb-20

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Apr-20

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Jun-2

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Jul-2

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Aug-20

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Oct-2

0

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Feb-21


UR

LPR

of 82

Figure 96: Rajasthan Rural - Age Wise


Figure 97: Rajasthan Urban - Age Wise


0

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of 82

Figure 98: Rajasthan- Education Level Wise


Rajasthan’srural UER peaked at 27.74% in December 2020 (figure 92), nearly

thrice the national average at the time at 9.15%. Rural UER was at 25.61% in February

2021, over 11% higher than the pre-Covid levels in February 2020, and over thrice the

national average. Rural LPR though was over5% higher than the previous year. Rural

female LPR was less than a seventh of male LPR in February 2021, at 9% and 76%

respectively, along with a striking 74.23% female UER at the time (figure 94).

Similar to rural, urban UER has generally been high even pre-Covid, hovering

over 15%, with a peak of 35.53% seen in April 2020 (figure 93), significantly higher

than the national average of 24.95% at the time. Urban UER still was at 25.59% in

February 2021, more than thrice the national average at the time, though LPR has

expanded by over 2% compared to last year. A similar gap to rural male and female

LPR was seen in the urban areas, with female LPR at 8.48% in February 2021

compared to 71.63% male LPR (figure 95), along with an appalling89.18% female

UER at the time. Low female LPR in both rural as well as urban areas indicate the




with especially high rates in the age brackets between ‘15-24 years’, these rates being

even higher than pre-Covid levels (figure 96 and 97). There was also an increase in

UER in urban areas of those over 65 years. UER at the education level of graduates

and matriculation seems to be a major challenge with their UER at 59.25% and 34.4%

respectively in February 2021.

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-

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Jun-1

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of 82

15. Tamil Nadu

Figure 99: Tamil Nadu Rural


Figure 100: Tamil Nadu Urban


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of 82

Figure 101: Tamil Nadu Rural - Gender Wise


Figure 102: Tamil Nadu Urban - Gender Wise


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Mar-1

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Jan-2

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Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

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Aug-20

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Oct-2

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UR

LPR

0

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Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

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Jun-2

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Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

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UR

LPR

of 82

Figure 103: Tamil Nadu Rural - Age Wise


Figure 104: Tamil Nadu Urban - Age Wise


0

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105





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of 82

Figure 105: Tamil Nadu - Education Level Wise


Tamil Nadu’s rural UER peaked at 53.19% in April 2020, more than double the

national average at 22.19% at the time (figure 99). A subsequent drastic increase in

MGNREGA employment contributed in rural UER decreasing significantly to 4.53%

in July 2020. Rural UER was at 2.7% in February 2021, marginally higher than

1.17%in February 2020, coupled with a significant decrease in rural LPR by around

8%. Rural female LPR at 10% is less than a sixth of male LPR in February 2021, and

7% lower than the previous year (figure 101).

A similar peak of 45.55% urban UER was seen in April 2020, significantly

higher than national average at the time (figure 100). Urban UER, though similar to

national average7.27% in February 2021 is more than double that of previous year.

This was coupled with a nearly 3% fall in LPR compared to the previous year. Female

LPR in urban areas at 6.36% in February 2021was lower than in rural areas, and a

fraction of urban male LPR at 60.56% at the time (figure 102).


as well as urban areas, especially in the age bracket of ’20-24 years’ (figure 103 and

104). UER at the level of ‘Graduate & above’ at 16.78% in February 2021, continues

to remain higher than other education level brackets.

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-

19

Jun-1

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Jul-1

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Oct-1

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Nov-19

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Jan-2

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Apr-20

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of 82

16. Telangana

Figure 106: Telangana Rural


Figure 107: Telangana Urban


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0

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Mar-1

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Jan-2

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Mar-2

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Apr-20

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Jul-2

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Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

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Jun-1

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Jul-1

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Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

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Jun-2

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Jul-2

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Aug-20

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of 82

Figure 108: Telangana Rural - Gender Wise


Figure 109: Telangana Urban - Gender Wise


0

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85

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9

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Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

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Aug-20

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Oct-2

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Jan-2

1

Feb-21


UR

LPR

0

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Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

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Jun-1

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Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21


UR

LPR

of 82

Figure 110: Telangana Rural - Age Wise


Figure 111: Telangana Urban - Age Wise


0

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65

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75





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of 82

Figure 112: Telangana - Education Level Wise


Telangana’s rural UER peaked at 12% in June 2020, higher than the national

average of 9.49% at the time (figure 106). Rural UER was at 6.12% in February 2021,

lower than 9.02%in February 2020, though this was accompanied by rural LPR

shrinking by nearly 4%. Rural female LPR at an impressive 60.09% in February 2021

is amongst the highest in India, only less than 4% below the rural male LPR in the

corresponding period (figure 108).

A peak of 21.4% urban UER was seen in May2020, marginally below national

average of 23.14% at the time (figure 107). Urban UER at 4.71% in February 2021 has

stabilised at below the pre-Covid levels, though this was in the backdrop ofaover5%

fall in LPR compared to the previous year. Female LPR in urban areas at 7.56% in

February 2021was significantly lower than the rural areas, and a fraction of urban male

LPR at 67% at the time (figure 109).


especially in the age bracket of ‘20-24 years’, though this level is below than pre-

Covid levels in urban areas (figure 110 and 111). Rural areas saw an increase in UER

of those over 65 years of age. Though far lower than national average, UER at the level

of ‘Graduate & above’ at 8.36% in February 2021, remains higher than other education

level brackets. UER at the education level of ‘Graduation & above’ seems to be a

major challenge with their UER at 29.95% in February 2021, significantly higher than

other educational levels.

0

5

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45

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

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of 82

17. Uttar Pradesh

Figure 113: Uttar Pradesh Rural


Figure 114: Uttar Pradesh Urban


0

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10,00,000

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0

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Sep-19

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Nov-19

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Jan-2

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Mar-2

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Apr-20

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of 82

Figure 115: Uttar Pradesh Rural - Gender Wise


Figure 116: Uttar Pradesh Urban - Gender Wise


0

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Mar-1

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9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

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Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

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Jan-2

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UR

LPR

0

5

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Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-1

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Jun-1

9

Jul-1

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Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

0

Feb-20

Mar-2

0

Apr-20

May-2

0

Jun-2

0

Jul-2

0

Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

0

Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21


UR

LPR

of 82

Figure 117: Uttar Pradesh Rural - Age Wise


Figure 118: Uttar Pradesh Urban - Age Wise


0

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75





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of 82

Figure 119: Uttar Pradesh - Education Level Wise


Uttar Pradesh’s rural UER peaked at 19.92% in April 2020, lower than the

national average of 22.89% at the time (figure 113). Effective use of MGNREGA,

which saw a marked increase in May 2020 contributed to decrease in rural UER to

4.39% in July 2020. Rural UE in the state has come down to less than half of pre-

Covid levels with a 3.75% rural UER in February 2021 compared to 8.12% in

February 2020, but the rural LPR has shrunk by around3% compared to the previous

year. Female LPR in rural areas was quite low at 2.18% in February 2021, a fraction of

male LPR at 65.88% at the time (figure 115).

Urban UER peaked at 30.55% in May 2020,higher than the national average of

23.14% at the time (figure 114). Urban UER was at 5.57%in February 2021 less than

half the urban UER in February 2020, though the urban LPR has shrunk by over 5% in

the same period. Similar to rural areas, female LPR was low at 3.01% in February

2021, an over 3% decrease compared to the previous year (figure 116). Low female



in this direction.


especially in the age bracket of ‘15-24 years’, and the UER in the ’15-19 years’ bracket

has increased post the pandemic in rural areas (figure 117 and 118). UER at the level

of ‘Graduate & above’ at 15.53% in February 2021, continues to remain higher than

other education level brackets (figure 119).

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

Mar-1

9

Apr-19

May-

19

Jun-1

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Jul-1

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Aug-19

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Jan-2

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Mar-2

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Apr-20

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of 82

18. West Bengal

Figure 120: West Bengal Rural


Figure 121: West Bengal Urban


0

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35,00,000

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0

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Mar-1

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Apr-20

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0

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Mar-1

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Apr-19

May-1

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Jun-1

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Jul-1

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Aug-19

Sep-19

Oct-1

9

Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

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Feb-20

Mar-2

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Apr-20

May-2

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Jun-2

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Jul-2

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Aug-20

Sep-20

Oct-2

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Nov-20

Dec-20

Jan-2

1

Feb-21


of 82

Figure 122: West Bengal - Gender Wise


Figure 123: West Bengal Urban - Gender Wise


0

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Mar-1

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Jul-1

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Nov-19

Dec-19

Jan-2

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Feb-20

Mar-2

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Apr-20

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Jun-2

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Jul-2

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UR

LPR

0

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9

Aug-19

Sep-19

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9

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Jan-2

0

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Mar-2

0

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UR

LPR

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Figure 124: West Bengal Rural - Age Wise


Figure 125: West Bengal Urban - Age Wise


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Figure 126: West Bengal - Education Level Wise


West Bengal’s rural UER peaked at 18.43% in May 2020, below national

average of 21.1% at the time (figure 120). Rural UE in the state has come down to

6.35% in February 2021, though still higher than 3.78% in February 2020,

accompanied by nearly same LPR compared to the previous year. Rural female LPR at

17.1% in February 2021, though higher than national average, was less than a fifth of

male LPR at the time (figure 122).

Urban UER also peaked in August 2020 at 18.66%, nearly double the national

average at the time (figure 121). Urban UER has stabilised at below pre-Covid levels

at 5.9% in February 2021, although with a marginallylower LPR compared to previous

year. Female LPR in urban areas at 9.85% in February 2021was lower than the rural

areas, and less than a seventh of urban male LPR at 73.74% at the time (figure 123).



years’, with UER in rural areas for ‘15-19 years’ being significantly higher than pre-

pandemic figures (figure 124 and 125). UER at the education level of graduates and

matriculation was higher than other education levels, at 13.18% and 11.69%

respectively in February 2021(figure 126).

0

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IV. ANALYSIS OF NATIONAL FIGURES

Figure 127: India Rural


Figure 128: India Urban


0

25,00,000

50,00,000

75,00,000

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Feb-21

MGNREGA (Households Employed in India) India Rural Unemployment Rate India Rural Labour Participation Rate

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Jun-2

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Feb-21

India Urban Unemployment Rate India Urban Labour Participation Rate

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Figure 129: India - Gender Wise


Figure 130: India Urban - Gender Wise


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Mar-2

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Apr-20

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Jun-2

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LPR

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Figure 131: India Rural - Age Wise


Figure 132: India Urban - Age Wise


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Sep-19

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Figure 133: India - Education Level Wise


Figure 134- India Employment by Major Sectors/Industry


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0

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Mar-19 Apr-19 May-19 Jun-19 Jul-19 Aug-19 Sep-19 Oct-19 Nov-19 Dec-19 Jan-20 Feb-20 Mar-20 Apr-20 May-20 Jun-20 Jul-20 Aug-20 Sep-20 Oct-20 Nov-20 Dec-20 Jan-21 Feb-21

Industry - Mining Industry - Manufacturing Industry - Utilities

Industry - Real Estate & Construction Agriculture Services

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India’s rural UER peaked at 22.89% in April 2020 (figure 127). A subsequent


to 6.51% in July 2020. Rural UER has stabilised at 6.86% in February 2021, has

stabilised at a marginally lower figure than 8.44% in February 2020. This has been

coupled with a marginal decrease in rural LPR from 43.67% in February 2020 to

42.16% in February 2021. Rural female LPR at 10.89% in February 2021 is less than a

sixth of male LPR at 69.43%, though similar to the pre-pandemic figure of last year.

Rural male LPR in the same period has decreased by around 3%. In rural areas, female

UER has generally been higher than male UER, and at 10.92% in February 2021

continues to be 4% higher than male UER at the time (figure 129).

A similar peak of 24.95% urban UER was seen in April 2020 (figure 128).

Urban UER was at 6.99% in February 2021, lower figure than 8.65% in February

2020. This has been coupled with urban LPR shrinking by over 3%, from 40.48% in

February 2020 to 37.25% in February 2021. Urban female LPR at 6.56% in February

2021 is less than in in rural areas, and significantly lower than male LPR at 64.64%,

and also over 3% lower than the pre-pandemic figure of last year. Rural male LPR in

the same period has decreased by around 3%. In urban areas too, female UER has

generally been higher than male UER, and at 10.92% in February 2021 continues to be

11% higher than male UER at the time (figure 130).

Similar to pre-pandemic, there was a high incidence of youth UE in both rural as

well as urban areas, significantly higher in the age brackets of ‘15-24 years’ (figure

131 and 132). UER at the education level of graduation and matriculation continues to

remain higher than at other educational levels. UER of ‘Graduate & above’ 23.8% in

February 2021 is around 5% higher than the corresponding figure in the previous year

and UER of 8.81% of ‘Class X-XII’ is over 6% lower than the corresponding figure in

the previous year.

In terms of sectors, employment in agriculture has increased from 142.5 million

in February 2020 to 151.3 million in February 2021. Though in the employment in the

service sector saw a decrease from 159.5 million to 147.3 million. Industries sector

has also seen a marginal decrease from 103.5 million in February 2020 to 100 million

in February 2021. Employment though in ‘Real estate and construction’(industry) has

expanded from 62.8 million to 66.7million in the last year, though coupled with a

contraction in employment in ‘Manufacturing’(industry) from 37.7 million to 30.6

million.

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V. LOOKING INTO THE CMIE NUMBERS

Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy has been a long-standing body

consistently producing statistics on the Indian economy. With CMIE itself calling it

‘leading business information company’3 and the main clientele being business firms,

the focus is largely on gathering consumer data focussing on urban regions.CPHS, is a

comprehensive survey monitoring various aspects like spending and saving

behaviours, with unemployment only a part of it. For CPHS, of the annual sample size

of 1676,661 households. Of this, over 113,231 (64%) are urban households and 63,430

(35%) are rural households. CMIE has a larger urban sample despite a lower

proportion of the population residing there.

NSSO on the other hand has 55% rural Households and 45% urban households

for its PLFS survey. NSSO’s PLFS unlike the CMIE’s CPHS has employment as its

only focus. There is also a stark difference in employment numbers, both the actual

figures and trends of both the survey results.

Table 1: Comparison of Unemployment rates of surveys of NSSO and CMIE 2017-18 2018-19 2017-18 2018-19

NSSO PLFS (UER) CMIE CPHS (UER)

ALL INDIA 6.1% 5.8% 4.6% 6.25%

ALL INDIA - MALE 6.2% 6.0% 3.73% 5.1%

ALL INDIA - FEMALE 5.7% 5.2% 11.23% 14.57%

URBAN 7.8% 7.7% 5.16% 6.85%

URBAN - MALE 7.1% 7.1% 3.9% 5.25%

URBAN - FEMALE 10.8% 9.9% 13.77% 18.66%

RURAL 5.3% 5.0% 4.47% 5.96%

RURAL - MALE 5.8% 5.6% 3.65% 5.03%

RURAL - FEMALE 3.8% 3.5% 10.04% 12.65%

As is evident from the table, there is a serious mismatch in both the quantum and

trend of survey results. As per PLFS, UER in the country came down from 6.1% in

2017-18 to 5.8% in 2018-19, whereas CPHS shows an increase from 4.6% in 2017-18

to 6.25% in 2018-19. This gap gets even wider when looking into other sub-

classifications. For instance, as per PLFS urban female UER came down from 10.8%

in 2017-18 to 9.9% in 2018-19, whereas CPHS shows an increase from 13.77% in

2017-18 to 18.66% in 2018-19. Even if the different definitions of employment by

CMIE and NSSO is considered wherein CMIE only considers substantive

employment, it still doesn’t explain the variation in the overall trend.

3https://www.cmie.com/kommon/bin/sr.php?kall=wapps&tabno=7030&page=about_us#:~:text=CMIE%2C%20or%20Centre%20for%20Monitoring,as%20an%20independent%20think%20tank.

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CMIE has had the same sample since 2016 which the surveyors keep revisiting.

While having this fixed sample helped it execute the survey over the course of the

pandemic. While a serious drawback is that a fixed sample becomes non-representative

of the population over a period of time and CMIE has had it over the last 4 years.

A data set representing a large population like India is dependable if it gives

reliable and consistent data of the sub-classifications. This is where you find gaps in

the CPHS data. While looking at individual states and sub-categories like age, there is

incomprehensible month on month and quarter on quarter variation in most age-related

data sets. For instance, in rural Telangana, in ‘15-19 age group’ UER goes from 50%

in December 2019 to 100% in March 2020 and going down to 0% in April 2020. In

most of the cases in the age brackets over 40 years, there is 0% unemployment.

While this is just an instance, such aberrations are seen in every age-wise data

set of every state. This is the case for all employment related figures stratified on other

classifications. In rural Telangana, female LPR went from 68% in November 2020 to

26.77% in December 2020 and jumped back to 59.3% in January 2021. Given the

larger data set is a compilation of subsets, it raises pertinent questions on the reliability

of the overall CMIE CPHS employment figures. It is also important to note that CMIE

does not reveal the confidence interval and standard error of their data.

Figure 135 - Haryana Rural Unemployment Figures


As seen from Figure 135, there is inexplicable month on month variations in

UER in rural Haryana, not explained by seasonality or any externality. For instance,

UER rises from 16.22% in July 2019 to nearly double at 30.94% in the subsequent

month, before coming down to 16.29% in September 2019.

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State Rural Unemployment Rate

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VI. CONCLUSION

The analysis shows that how crucial it is to look into data closely, especially

from a policy perspective. India is a vast country where figures vary vastly going from

one state to another, urban to rural, male to female, one age group to another, and other

such sub-classifications. National figures unwittingly mask more than what they

reveal.

Even though UER for rural India is 6.86% in February 2021, the corresponding

rate for Assam is 1.52% and for Rajasthan is 25.61%. This is the same case when we

look at other figures like LPR classified on either of gender, state, region, age group,

educational qualification, or an intersection of these.

What is evident is that while UER has largely come down to pre-pandemic

figures, it has come in the backdrop of reduced labour participation. Low female

labour force participation and youth unemployment continue to be challenges that the

country was facing prior to the pandemic.

While pertinent questions have been raised over the reliability of CMIE

employment data, it continues to be the only consistent data set that we have since the

pandemic began.

post covid-19 employment scenario in india

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