Unemployment rate hits a 16-month high in December: report

New Delhi: Unemployment in the country rose to 8.3% in December and it is the highest in 16 months. Last month, it was 8%.

According to the data from the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE), the urban unemployment rate rose to 10.09% in December from 8.96% in November. On the other hand, the rural unemployment rate slipped to 7.44% from 7.55%. According to another data released by the National Statistical Office (NSO) in November, the unemployment rate had declined to 7.2% in the July-September quarter compared to 7.6% in the previous quarter.

Mahesh Vyas, managing director of the CMIE, told Reuters that the rise in the unemployment rate was not as bad as it may seem. "It came on top of a healthy increase in the labour participation rate which shot up to 40.48% in December. It is the highest in 12 months. Most importantly, the employment rate has increased in December to 37.1%, which again is the highest since January 2022."

The biggest challenge the country's government has is containing high inflation and creating jobs for millions. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said 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.