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India – Unemployment rate hits 45-year high

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India – Unemployment rate hits 45-year high

04 February 2019

The unemployment rate in India in 2017/2018 stood at 6.1%, according to a report in the Business Standard that cited an official survey withheld by the government.

The release of the leaked unemployment rate data, from the National Sample Survey Office, delivers a blow to Prime Minister Narendra Modi just months before what is expected to be a closely fought general election in India.

The New York Times reports that Modi’s government was accused last week of suppressing an official report on the national unemployment rate.

The report is at the centre of a controversy after two National Statistical Commission members, including the acting chairman, resigned on Monday, alleging that the government had withheld its release despite the Commission’s approval.

According to the report, unemployment stood at 7.8% in urban areas compared with 5.3% in the countryside. The labour force participation rate declined to 36.9% in 2017-18 from 39.5% in 2011-12.

The data provides the first comprehensive assessment of India's employment since Modi's decision in November 2016 to withdraw most of the country's banknotes from circulation overnight.

The government has declined to confirm or deny the report.