Lucknow, 20 July: In the face of a severe job crisis, Uttar Pradesh has managed to keep its unemployment rate much lower than the national average, according to the most recent Center for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE) statistics.
In June 2022, India’s unemployment rate was 7.8 percent, while the UP’s rate was 2.8 percent. The unemployment rate in the state has consistently been lower than the national average. The unemployment rate in India was 7.9 percent in June 2019, while the rate in Uttar Pradesh was 11.2 percent.
DK Singh, Uttar Pradesh’s Additional Labour Commissioner said that investor interest in the state has encouraged industry and infrastructure development, resulting in greater job creation.
The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), as well as other social security measures, have helped improve the state’s employment condition, according to Singh. He emphasized that the government had initiatives in the works to create even more employment in the state.
While the unemployment rate in Uttar Pradesh fell by 8.4 percentage points in June 2022 compared to June 2019, the unemployment rates in Chhattisgarh, Goa, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, and Odisha fell by three to seven percentage points. In contrast, the unemployment rate in Rajasthan, Assam, Haryana, Telangana, and Uttarakhand climbed by four to sixteen percentage points between June 2022 and June 2019.
Rajasthan’s unemployment rate increased from 13.9% in June 2019 to 29.8% in June 2022, while Assam’s increased from 5.9% to 17.2% in the same period. It is worth noting that, while an increase in employment might lower the unemployment rate, a drop in labor participation can also lower the unemployment rate. Meanwhile, India’s labor market is in shambles, with employment falling by 13 million from 404 million in May to 390 million in June. “This is the largest drop in employment in a non-lockout month. During April and May 2022, employment increased by eight million. The drop in May has more than offset this increase,” CMIE stated in its study.
Employment in June was the lowest since July 2021, according to the report. Worryingly, out of the 13 million jobs lost throughout the month, the number of jobless persons grew by just three million ? the other 10 million left the labour force.
