India’s unemployment rate edged lower to 4.9 per cent in February, down from 5 per cent in January, according to the latest data released by the National Statistics Office (NSO) on Monday
India’s unemployment rate fell to 4.9 per cent in February from 5 per cent in January, signalling a modest improvement in labour market conditions, according to data released by the National Statistics Office (NSO) on Monday.
The figure was also better than market expectations. Economists surveyed by Reuters had projected the unemployment rate to come in at 5.1 per cent for the month.
The decline was largely driven by easing joblessness in urban areas and an improvement in employment indicators for women across both rural and urban regions, according to the monthly bulletin released by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI).
Urban unemployment among people aged 15 years and above dropped to 6.6 per cent in February from 7 per cent in January, while rural unemployment remained steady at 4.2 per cent during the period.
The latest data follows a
slight uptick in January, when the unemployment rate rose to 5 per cent from 4.8 per cent in December 2025, partly reflecting seasonal factors and a post-harvest slowdown in rural labour demand.
Female joblessness declines
The February data also pointed to an improvement in labour market outcomes for women.
Overall female unemployment declined to 5.1 per cent in February from 5.6 per cent a month earlier. Urban female unemployment recorded a sharper fall, dropping to 8.7 per cent from 9.8 per cent in January.
In rural areas, female unemployment eased to 4 per cent from 4.3 per cent in the previous month.
Women’s participation in the workforce also showed a slight uptick. The female labour force participation rate (LFPR) rose to 35.3 per cent in February from 35.1 per cent in January, supported largely by stronger participation in rural areas where the rate reached 40 per cent.
Participation largely stable
Despite the fall in unemployment, overall participation in the labour market remained broadly stable.
The labour force participation rate for people aged 15 years and above was unchanged at 55.9 per cent in February. Rural LFPR stood at 58.7 per cent, while the urban rate edged up slightly to 50.4 per cent from 50.3 per cent in January.
Similarly, the worker population ratio (WPR)—which measures the share of employed persons in the population—was largely steady at 53.2 per cent in February, compared with 53.1 per cent a month earlier.
In rural areas, the WPR stood at 56.3 per cent, while the urban ratio was recorded at 47 per cent.
Female WPR improved marginally to 33.4 per cent from 33.1 per cent in January, indicating a gradual increase in the number of women engaged in work.
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