Urban unemployment in India had increased to 12.6% in the April-June quarter of 2021, from 9.3% in the January-March quarter, the Periodic Labour Force Survey released by the government’s National Statistical Office showed. The report was released on March 14.

The April-June unemployment rate had, however, eased from 20.8% in the same quarter in 2020, the data from the report showed. The number was high in 2020 due to the nationwide lockdown during the first wave of coronavirus outbreak in the country.

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The unemployment rate is defined as the percentage of unemployed persons in the labour force. The numbers are significant as the April-June period coincides with the massive second wave of Covid-19 pandemic. At the peak of the second wave, more than four lakh daily cases and thousands of deaths were recorded in India.

The report released on Monday showed that 25.5% of people in the age group of 15-29 were unemployed during the April-June quarter last year, an increase of 2.6% from the numbers in the January-March quarter. In 2020, the number of unemployed people in the same quarter was 34.7%, the data from the report showed.

The labour force participation rate, which is defined as the percentage of the population in the labour force for all age groups, declined from 37.5% in the January-March quarter to 37.1% in April-June. In 2020, the labour force participation rate was 35.9% in the April-June quarter.

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The number of self-employed people also rose from 39.3% in the January-March quarter to 40.7% between April and June.

As per the report, the unemployment rate among urban females in the age group of 15-29 was higher in comparison to urban males.

While the unemployment rate in urban females was at 31% for the April-June quarter, the unemployment in urban males was seven percent lower to 24%. In 2020, the unemployment rate amongst females and males was at 36% and 34.3% respectively in the April-June quarter.

The PLFS was launched by the National Statistical Office in 2017.