Lok Sabha Question No. 2002 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2022-03-14
Subject: Problems of Increasing Unemployment
Ministry: LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT
Asked by: Kaushalendra Kumar

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT LOKSABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.2002 TO BE ANSWERED ON 14 TH  MARCH, 2022

## PROBLEMS OF INCREASING UNEMPLOYMENT

## 2002. SHRI KAUSHALENDRA KUMAR:

Will the Minister of LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT be pleased to state:

- (a) whether  the  Government  is  aware  of  the  fact  that  the  problem  of unemployment is increasing day by day in the country;
- (b) whether there is a lot of discontentment and resentment among the youth of the country due to rising unemployment;
- (c) whether  appointments  in  Government  jobs  are  continuously  decreasing day  by  day  and  whether  avenues  of  new  jobs  have  decreased  as  no factories have been set up in the private sector during the last five years;
- (d) whether  any  concrete  action  plan  is  being  considered  for  creating employment opportunities for the youth of the country; and
- (e) if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE FOR LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT (SHRI RAMESWAR TELI)

(a)  to  (c)  :  The  data  on  Employment and  Unemployment is collected through Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) conducted by National Statistical Office (NSO), Ministry of Statistics & Programme Implementation (MoSPI) since 201718.  As  per  the  latest  available  annual  report  for  the  year  2019-20,  the  yearwise estimated Worker Population Ratio (WPR), and Unemployment Rate (UR) on usual status for age 15 years and above during 2017-18, 2018-19 and 201920 are given below:

| Years                                |   2017-18 |   2018-19 |   2019-20 |
|--------------------------------------|-----------|-----------|-----------|
| Worker Population Ratio (WPR) (in %) |      46.8 |      47.3 |      50.9 |
| Unemployment Rate (UR) (in %)        |       6   |       5.8 |       4.8 |

Source: MoSPI

PLFS Survey indicates that while WPR has increased during 2017-18 to 2019-20, the Unemployment rate has decreased during this period.

(d) & (e): Employment generation coupled with improving employability is the priority  of  the  Government.  Accordingly,  the  Government  of  India  has  taken various  steps  for  generating  employment  in  the  country.  The  Government  of India  has  announced  Aatmanirbhar  Bharat  package  to  provide  stimulus  to business and to mitigate the adverse impact of Covid 19. Under this package, the  Government  is  providing  fiscal  stimulus  of  more  than  Rs.  Twenty  Seven lakh crore. This package comprises of various long term schemes/ programmes/  policies  for making  the  country  self-reliant and  to create employment opportunities.

Aatmanirbhar  Bharat  Rojgar  Yojana  (ABRY)  has  been  launched  with effect  from  1st  October,  2020  as  part  of  Atmanirbhar  Bharat  package  3.0  to incentivize  employers  for  creation  of  new  employment  along  with  social security  benefits  and  restoration  of  loss  of  employment  during  Covid-19 pandemic. This scheme being implemented through the Employees' Provident Fund  Organisation  (EPFO),  seeks  to  reduce  the  financial  burden  of  the employers and encourages them to hire more workers. The terminal date for registration of beneficiaries has been extended from 30.06.2021 to 31.03.2022. Benefits  have  been  provided  to  50.81  lakh  beneficiaries  through  1.33  lakh establishments till 28.02.2022.

Pradhan  Mantri  Mudra  Yojana  (PMMY)  is  being  implemented  by  the Government  for  facilitating  self-employment.  Under  PMMY,  collateral  free loans upto Rs. 10 lakh, are extended to micro/small business enterprises and to individuals to enable them to setup or expand their business activities. Upto 04.03.2022, 33.91 crore loans were sanctioned under the scheme.

Government had launched the Garib Kalyan Rojgar Abhiyaan (GKRA) of 125 days on 20th June, 2020 to boost employment and livelihood opportunities for returnee migrant workers and similarly affected persons including youth in rural  areas,  in  116  selected  districts  across  6  States  of  Bihar,  Jharkhand, Madhya  Pradesh,  Odisha,  Rajasthan  and  Uttar  Pradesh.  The  Abhiyaan  has achieved an employment generation of 50.78 crore person days with a total expenditure of Rs. 39,293 crore.

PM  GatiShakti  is  a  transformative  approach  for  economic  growth  and sustainable  development.  The  approach  is  driven  by  seven  engines,  namely, Roads,  Railways,  Airports,  Ports,  Mass  Transport,  Waterways,  and  Logistics Infrastructure.  This  approach  is  powered  by  Clean  Energy  and  Sabka  Prayas leading to huge job and entrepreneurial opportunities for all.

The Government has put emphasis on railways, roads, urban transport, power, telecom, textiles and affordable housing amid continued focus on the National  Infrastructure  Pipeline.  Budget  2021-22  launched  Production  Linked Incentive (PLI) schemes, with an outlay of Rs. 1.97 lakh crore, for a period of

5 years starting from 2021-22. All these initiatives are expected to collectively generate  employment  and  boost  output  in  the  medium  to  long  term  through multiplier-effects. The  Government  of  India  is  encouraging  various  projects  involving substantial investment and public expenditure on schemes like Prime Minister's  Employment  Generation  Programme  (PMEGP)  of  the  Ministry  of Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises, Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment  Guarantee  Scheme  (MGNREGS)  &  Pt.  Deen  Dayal  Upadhyaya Grameen Kaushalya Yojana (DDU-GKY) of the Ministry of Rural Development, Deen Dayal Antodaya Yojana-National Urban Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NULM) of the Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs etc. for employment generation. Besides these initiatives, various flagship programmes of the Government  such  as  Make  in  India,  Digital  India,  Smart  City  Mission,  Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation, Housing for All, Infrastructure Development and Industrial Corridors are also oriented towards generating employment opportunities.

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