India’s Labour Market: Key Trends from PLFS April 2025 Bulletin

Current Context: The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) released the first Monthly Bulletin of the updated Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) for April 2025 on May 15, 2025.

• The bulletin provides monthly estimates of key labour market indicators like Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR), Worker Population Ratio (WPR), and Unemployment Rate (UR).
• The unemployment rate stood at 5.1%, with urban unemployment at 6.5% and rural unemployment at 4.5%.
• The LFPR was 55.6%, with rural participation at 58.0% and urban participation at 50.7%.
• The PLFS methodology was revamped in January 2025 to provide high-frequency labour market indicators and expanded coverage.

Question:

Q.1 What was the overall unemployment rate reported in the PLFS Monthly Bulletin for April 2025?
a) 4.5%
b) 5.1%
c) 6.5%
d) 7.0%

Answer: b) According to the bulletin, the national-level unemployment rate stood at 5.1%.