Lok Sabha Question No. 3824 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2026-03-16
Subject: Unemployment Data of Educated Youth
Ministry: LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT
Asked by: Dr. M K Vishnu Prasad

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 3824 TO BE ANSWERED ON 16 TH  MARCH, 2026

## UNEMPLOYMENT DATA OF EDUCATED YOUTH

3824.      DR. M K VISHNU PRASAD:

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

- (a) whether the  Government  has any  data  on  unemployment  among educated youth, especially in rural and semi-urban areas of the country and if so, the details thereof;
- (b) the  details  of  the  measures  taken  by  the  Government  to  generate sustainable employment;
- (c) whether the Government has conducted any assessment of unemployment rates during the last five years and the current year and if so, the details thereof, year and State/UT-wise; and
- (d) whether the Government is aware/admits that the youth unemployment has  increased,  especially  among  graduates  and  post-graduates  and  if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE FOR LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT (SUSHRI SHOBHA KARANDLAJE)

(a)  to  (d):  The  official  data  on  Employment  and  Unemployment  is  collected through Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS), which is conducted by Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) since 2017-18.

As per the latest Annual PLFS reports, the estimated Unemployment Rate (UR) on usual status for persons of age 15 years and above was 6.0% in 201718,  5.8%  in  2018-19,  4.8%  in  2019-20,  4.2%  in  2020-21,  4.1%  in  2021-22  and 3.2% in 2022-23 and 2023-24. State/UT-wise information is available in the PLFS reports which may be seen at the website of MoSPI at https://www.mospi.gov.in/publications-reports .

Also, the estimated Unemployment Rate (UR) on usual status for youth of age 15-29 years of different general education level for rural and urban areas of the country during 2023-24 is as follows:

| Unemployment Rate (in %)   | Unemployment Rate (in %)   | Unemployment Rate (in %)   |
|----------------------------|----------------------------|----------------------------|
| General Education Level    | Rural                      | Urban                      |
| Literate & Upto Primary    | 2.1                        | 4.6                        |
| Middle                     | 3.7                        | 6.2                        |
| Secondary                  | 4.3                        | 7.2                        |
| Higher Secondary           | 8.0                        | 11.6                       |
| Secondary & above          | 13.6                       | 19.2                       |

Source: PLFS, MoSPI

Further,  the  estimated  Unemployment  Rate  (UR)  on  usual  status  for graduate  youth  of  age  15-29  years  has  decreased  from  35.8%  in  2017-18  to 25.9%  in  2023-24  and  36.2%  to  32.2%  for  post  graduates  during  the  same period.

Employment generation coupled with improving employability is a priority of the Government. Accordingly, Government is implementing various employment  generation  schemes/  programmes  in  the  country.  The  details  of various  employment  generation  schemes/  programmes  being  implemented  by the Government may be seen at   https://dge.gov.in/dge/schemes\_programmes.

Government is also implementing Skill India Mission (SIM) to deliver skill, re-skill and up-skill training through an extensive network of skill development centres/ schools/ colleges /institutes etc. under various schemes, viz. Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY), Jan Shikshan Sansthan (JSS), National Apprenticeship  Promotion  Scheme  (NAPS)  and  Craftsmen  Training  Scheme (CTS) through Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) in the country. The SIM aims at enabling youth of India to get future ready, equipped with industry relevant skills.

Ministry  of  Electronics  and  Information  Technology  (MeitY)  has  initiated 'FutureSkills PRIME' a programme for Re -skilling/Up-skilling of IT Manpower for Employability in 10 new/emerging technologies including Artificial Intelligence.

Government is implementing Employment Linked Incentive (ELI)  Scheme named  as  the Pradhan Mantri Viksit Bharat Rozgar Yojana to support employment generation, enhance employability and social security across all sectors, with special focus on the manufacturing sector. The scheme with an outlay  of  Rs  99,446  Crore  aims  to  incentivize  the  creation  of  more  than  3.5 Crore jobs in the country, over a period of 2 years.

Further,  Ministry  of  Labour  and  Employment,  Government  of  India,  is running the National Career Service (NCS) Portal which is a one-stop solution for providing career related services including jobs from private and government  sectors,  information  on  online  &  offline  job  fairs,  job  search  & matching, career counselling, vocational guidance, information on skill development courses, skill/training programmes etc. through a digital platform [www.ncs.gov.in].

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