PLI Scheme: Strengthening India's Manufacturing Ecosystem & Deepening Localization (See 'Corp Brief') India's Sovereign AI Models must be leveraged to strengthen Ayush digital ecosystem (See 'Corp Brief') Farm-Level AI Deployment in India Can Create Valuable Global Spillover Learnings (See 'Corp Brief') Chouhan issues directions to make MSP Procurement more Robust and Timely (See 'Corp Brief') Leaders Call for Affordable, Easy-to-Use and Multilingual AI for Wider Access (See 'Corp Brief') India, Brazil strengthen Telecom and Digital Partnership (See 'Corp Brief') ICAR, Dr. Reddy's Foundation ink MoU to strengthen agricultural skills & improve rural livelihoods (See 'Corp Brief') Baramati Copter accident: An update (See 'Corp Brief') India-New Zealand hold Working Group Meeting on Horticulture Cooperation (See 'Corp Brief') SARFAESI - Sec 34 bars civil courts from entertaining suits in respect of any action taken or to be taken under SARFAESI Act, and DRT alone has jurisdiction to adjudicate challenges to measures u/s 13(4): HC (See 'Legal Desk') Google CEO Pichai visits Bharat GI Coffee Lounge (See 'Corp Brief') New Delhi Frontier AI Commitments aim to democratize AI Access and Innovation (See 'Corp Brief') India aspires to establish equitable maritime order based on international rules (See 'Corp Brief') A&C - At Section 11 stage, it is required only to examine existence of arbitration agreement and not to adjudicate upon issues of arbitrability or merits, which are to be decided by arbitral tribunal: HC (See 'Legal Desk') Scaling Impactful AI Use Cases critical for India to become 'Use-Case Capital' (See 'Corp Brief') Joshi visits Exhibition on AI-Driven Transformation of Public Distribution System (See 'Corp Brief') IBC - Resolution Professional is obligated to ensure that resolution plan complies with all provisions of law, and he cannot escape liability by claiming lack of available data: HC (See 'Legal Desk') Responsible and Equitable Scaling of AI in Classrooms emerges as Key Priority (See 'Corp Brief') Power Minister inaugurates Pavilion at AI Impact Summit 2026 (See 'Corp Brief') Trade Marks - Section 35 permits bona fide use of one's own name or that of a predecessor in business, even if such use may otherwise amount to infringement under Section 29(5): HC (See 'Legal Desk') CCI approves proposed Merger of Hinduja Leyland Finance into NDL Ventures (See 'Corp Brief') IICA renews MoU with NALSAR to strengthen Academic Collaboration (See 'Corp Brief') Trade Marks - Mere knowledge of respondents' registered trade mark or speculative potential for confusion in tenders cannot negate bona fide adoption where trade name is derived from the predecessor's own surname: HC (See 'Legal Desk') CCI approves acquisition of portfolio services of Axis Securities by Axis Asset Management (See 'Corp Brief') IBC - In real estate projects, single insolvency petition is maintainable against more than one corporate entity if they are intrinsically connected in execution and marketing of project: SC (See 'Legal Desk') Finland-India Synergy can provide strong foundation for co-innovation: Finnish PM (See 'Corp Brief') PMLA - If Enforcement Directorate establishes connection between alleged predicate offences and accumulation or layering of assets, Adjudicating Authority's confirmation of provisional attachment may be upheld: SAFEMA (See 'Legal Desk') Chouhan calls for Direct Farmer Feedback to strengthen Scheme Effectiveness (See 'Corp Brief') PMLA - If under-construction property was purchased using funds routed through shell entities, and neither shares are allotted nor executed any loan agreement, such transaction was benami transaction: SAFEMA (See 'Legal Desk') AI Compendia to serve as Guidebooks for Global South: Govt (See 'Corp Brief') SEBI - Noticee is prohibited from taking up any new clients as stock broker: SEBI (See 'Legal Desk') Supreme Court Clears Path For Single Insolvency Proceedings Against Linked Group Companies (See CORP EINSICHT) IBC - Spectrum allocated to Telecom Service Providers cannot be subjected to proceedings under Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code: SC (See 'Legal Desk') AI is meant to augment, Not replace Clinicians: MoS (See 'Corp Brief') Misc - Delay in filing appeal u/s 74 of Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013 can be condoned u/s 5 of Limitation Act: SC (See 'Legal Desk') Chouhan launches artificial intelligence-based scheme 'Bharat VISTAAR' Phase 1 in Rajasthan (See 'Corp Brief') A&C - Section 29A does not impose any statutory bar on courts extending mandate after arbitral award has been delivered: SC (See 'Legal Desk') NHAI to develop First of its Kind 'Bee Corridors' along National Highways (See 'Corp Brief') A&C - Parties cannot be compelled to arbitrate when very existence of contract containing arbitration clause was alleged to be fake: SC (See 'Legal Desk') AI to power India's global knowledge leadership, key to Viksit Bharat 2047: Pradhan (See 'Corp Brief') NI Act - Person who is in charge of affairs of conduct of company is vicariously liable for offence u/s 138 of NI Act when cheque issued by company gets dishonoured: SC (See 'Legal Desk') AI and Data Centres are one of Defining Energy Challenges of Our Time (See 'Corp Brief') A&C - Court exercising appellate jurisdiction u/s 37 cannot substitute its own assessment of compensation once Sec 34 court has fixed reasonable award within terms of contract: SC (See 'Legal Desk') Robust and High-Quality Data key to Advanced AI Deployment in Banking and Finance (See 'Corp Brief') A&C - Different interpretation of contract by in itself is no ground to interfere with arbitral award: SC (See 'Legal Desk') India AI Impact Summit 2026 showcases Women-led AI for Public Good (See 'Corp Brief') A&C - Non-issuance of a Sec 21 notice by one party is not fatal to raising claims before arbitral tribunal if disputes are otherwise covered by broadly worded arbitration clause: SC (See 'Legal Desk')

Print

6.2 Crore net subscribers joined EPFO between Sept, 2017 - March, 2024

Published: Jul 09, 2024

By TIOLCorplaws News Service

NEW DELHI, JULY 09, 2024: ACCORDING to PLFS and RBI's KLEMS data, India has generated more than 8 crore (80 million) employment opportunities from 2017-18 to 2021-22. This translates to an average of over 2 crore (20 million) employment per year, despite of the fact that the world economy was hit by COVID-19 pandemic during 2020-21 which contradicts Citigroup's assertion of India's inability to generate sufficient employment. This significant employment creation demonstrates the effectiveness of various government initiatives aimed at boosting employment across sectors.

PLFS data

The Annual PLFS report depicts an improving trend in labour market indicators related to: (i) Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR), (ii) Worker Population Ratio (WPR) and (iii) Unemployment Rate (UR) for persons of age 15 years and above during 2017-18 to 2022-23. For instance, the WPR i.e. employment has increased from 46.8% in 2017-18 to 56% in 2022-23. Similarly, the labour force participation has also increased in the country from 49.8% in 2017-18 to 57.9% in 2022-23. The Unemployment Rate has declined from 6.0 % in 2017-18 to a low of 3.2% in 2022-23.

The PLFS data shows that during the last 5 years, more employment opportunities have been generated compared to the number of people joining the labour force, resulting in a consistent reduction in the unemployment rate. This is a clear indicator of the positive impact of government policies on employment. Contrary to the report, which suggests a dire employment scenario, the official data reveals a more optimistic picture of the Indian job market.

EPFO Data

The formal sector employment figures are also being bolstered by government efforts to improve ease of doing business, enhance skill development, and provide incentives for job creation in both the public and private sectors. The EPFO data suggests that more and more workers are joining formal jobs. During 2023-24, more than 1.3 crore subscribers joined EPFO which is more than double compared to 61.12 lakh joined EPFO during 2018-19. Moreover, during last six and half years (since September, 2017 to March, 2024) more than 6.2 crore net subscribers have joined EPFO.

New subscribers to NPS

The data from National Pension System (NPS) indicates that more than 7.75 lakh new subscribers have joined the NPS during 2023-24 under the Central and State governments which is 30% more than 5.94 lakh new subscribers joining NPS under government sector during 2022-23. This substantial increase in new subscribers highlights the government's proactive measures to fill-up the vacancies in public sector in timely manner.

Flexi-staffing sector

In a recent interaction of Indian Staffing Federation (ISF) members with Secretary, Ministry of Labour and Employment, ISF members informed that they are employing about 5.4 million formal contract workers. Nearly 30% demand in the sector remains unfulfilled at frontline across manufacturing, retail, banking due to talent shortages and labour mobility. 

Multiple new opportunities

The future prospects of the employment market in India are highly encouraging, as evidenced by data from various sources. The Global Capability Centers (GCCs) in India have shown remarkable growth in recent years. The gig economy also promises significant increase in workforce in the country. Notably, the NITI Aayog report on gig economy projects a substantial increase in platform workers, which is expected to reach 2.35 crore (23.5 million) by 2029-30, underscoring the rapid expansion of the gig economy. The gig workers are expected to form 6.7% of the non-agricultural workforce or 4.1% of the total livelihood in India by 2029-30. These developments collectively reflect India's robust economic trajectory and its potential to generate diverse employment opportunities.

Data Credibility

It is well known that the private data sources, which the report/media refers to as more reliable, has several shortcomings. These surveys use their own derived definition of employment - unemployment which is not aligned to either national or international standards. The sample distribution and methodology are often critiqued for not being as robust or representative as official data sources like PLFS. Therefore, reliance on such private data sources over official statistics can lead to misleading conclusions and thus, should be used with caution.

Further, some authors use data selectively which undermines the credibility of their analysis and does not present an accurate picture of the employment scenario in India. Such reports fail to consider the positive trends and comprehensive data from official sources.

Summary

The official data sources like PLFS, RBI, EPFO, etc. show consistent improvements in the key labour market indicators, including increased Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR) and Worker Population Ratio (WPR), and a declining Unemployment Rate during last five years. EPFO and NPS data further support the positive employment trends. The trends in manufacturing, expanding service sector, infrastructure growth, apart from others, including emerging opportunities in multiple sectors such as gig and platform economy and GCCs indicate robust future prospects.

The Ministry of Labour and Employment emphasizes the credibility and comprehensiveness of official data, cautioning against the selective use of private data sources that can lead to misleading conclusions about India's employment scenario.

The Government remains committed to creating a robust and inclusive job market, and the evidence suggests substantial progress is being made in this direction.

TIOL CORP SEARCH

TIOL GROUP WEBSITES

taxindiaonline
taxindiainternational
tioltube
TKF
TIOLawards
A TIOL Website. Copyright © 2025 TIOLcorplaws.com All rights reserved.