The 2023-24 period saw India’s employment rising to 64.33 crore. During 2017-18 it was only about 47.5 crore. That means about 16.8 crore jobs have been added in six years, as per data reportedly released by the Ministry of Labour and Employment. Meanwhile, the rate of unemployment has fallen from six per cent in 2017-18 to 3.2 per cent in 2023-24. What is heartening is that approximately 1.56 crore women are reported to have become part of the formal workforce during this period.
Interestingly, the percentage of self-employed has gone up to 58.5 per cent primarily due to the thriving startup environment in the country. Startups alone have created at least 17 lakh jobs. It is pertinent to mention here that India has become home to about 118 unicorns too along with about two lakh startups recognised by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT). Additionally, with so many global capability centres or GCCs opening up, job opportunities have multiplied.
Clearly, more and more people from the workforce are engaged in productive jobs. Unemployment amongst the youth has also dipped considerably, from 17.8 per cent to 10.2 per cent during the period. This is encouraging because globally, the average is 13.3 per cent, which is higher.
Government initiatives—such as Skill India, Rozgar Melas, PM Vishwakarma Scheme, Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), PM Viksit Bharat Rojgar Yojana and Lakhpati Didi Scheme—have significantly contributed towards this growth.
