India's unemployment rate rose to 8.3 per cent in December, the highest in 16 months, from 8 per cent in the previous month, data from the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE) showed today.
The urban unemployment rate rose to 10.09 per cent in December from 8.96 per cent in the previous month, while rural unemployment rate slipped to 7.44 per cent from 7.55 per cent, the data showed.
Mahesh Vyas, managing director of the CMIE, said the rise in the unemployment rate was "not as bad as it may seem" as it came on top of a healthy increase in the labour participation rate, which shot up to 40.48 per cent in December, the highest in 12 months.
"Most importantly, the employment rate has increased in December to 37.1 per cent, which again is the highest since January 2022," he told Reuters.
Containing high inflation and creating jobs for millions of young people entering the job market remain the biggest challenge for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's administration ahead of national elections in 2024.
The main opposition Congress launched a march in September from the Kanyakumari to Srinagar to mobilise public opinion on issues such as high prices, unemployment and what it says are the "divisive politics" of the BJP.
"India needs to move from a single focus on GDP growth to growth with employment, skilling of youth and creating production capacities with export prospects," Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who is leading the 3,500-km march on foot, told reporters yesterday.
The unemployment rate had declined to 7.2 per cent in the July-September quarter compared to 7.6 per cent in the previous quarter, according to separate quarterly data compiled by National Statistical Office (NSO) and released in November.
In December, the unemployment rate rose to 37.4 per cent in Haryana, followed by 28.5 per cent in Rajasthan and 20.8 per cent in Delhi, CMIE data showed.
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Featured Video Of The Day
3 Dead, Over 30 Cops Injured: Violence In UP's Sambhal Over Mosque Survey
Unemployment Rate At 3.2%, Will Drop Below 3% In Future: Labour Minister India's Unemployment Rate Decreased From 7% In 2022 To 3.1% In 2023: Report Unemployment Rate Declines To 6.7 Percent In India's Urban Areas: Survey 3 Dead, Over 30 Cops Injured: Violence In UP's Sambhal Over Mosque Survey Autopsy Reveals Chilling Details Of Family Kidnapped, Killed In Manipur Manipur Cops Walk 3 Hours To Raze Poppy Farms, Face "90 Armed Miscreants" Married Man Kills Live-In Partner, Burns Her Body In Haryana: Cops 15-Year-Old Girl Raped By Truck Driver In Madhya Pradesh Forest: Police Eknath Shinde Elected As Leader Of Shiv Sena Legislature Party Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.