India’s First Monthly Labour Survey: April Unemployment at 5.1%, Higher Among Men

The government has started releasing the periodic labour force survey (PLFS) monthly, which was previously released quarterly. The first-ever monthly PLFS released on Thursday revealed that India’s unemployment rate (UR) stood at 5.1% in April for persons aged 15 years and above.

The data also revealed that rates for male unemployment higher at at 5.2% while for females stood at 5%. The rural unemployment rate for all persons in all ages was 4.5% and the urban unemployment 6.5%. The urban unemployment rate among females in the age between 15 and 29 years was 23.7%. The revamped model assesses employment and unemployment data from rural areas too.

In April, about 55.6% of people aged 15 and above were either working or actively seeking work, according to the latest data. The labour force participation rate (LFPR) stood at 58% in rural areas and 50.7% in cities. For men, it was significantly higher—79% in villages and 75.3% in urban areas. Among women, however, the numbers were much lower, with only 38.2% participating in rural India and just 25.7% in urban parts.

Worker Population Ratio (WPR) in rural areas among persons of age 15 years and above was 55.4%. “WPR in urban areas among persons of the same age group was 47.4% with the overall WPR at the country level observed as 52.8% during April, 2025. WPR for female of age 15 years and above for rural and urban areas were respectively 36.8% and 23.5% in April, 2025 and the overall female WPR of the same age group at the country level was observed as 32.5%,” the Ministry of Statistics & Programme Implementation said in the release.

Revamped Survey

The ministry has revamped the PLFS from January 2025, considering the need for generation of high-frequency labour force indicators with enhanced coverage the sampling methodology.

The update will enable monthly estimation of key labour market indicators—the labour force participation rate (LFPR), worker population ratio (WPR), and unemployment rate—at the all-India level using the current weekly status (CWS) approach, thus providing timely data to support policy interventions, it said.

The government has also extended to cover rural areas, providing a more comprehensive view of employment and unemployment trends across the country, with the April-June 2025 data set to be released in August.

Furthermore, the ministry also shifted to a calendar-year format for annual employment data from the previous July-June cycle. Starting this year, PLFS results will follow the calendar year.