National Biodiversity Authority releases Rs 18.3 Lakh to Committees in UP and Sikkim (See 'Corp Brief') IBC - Section 16(2) of IBC clearly requires the IRP to be appointed as suggested by Financial Creditor or Corporate Debtor & such provision does not allow any deviation: HC (See 'Legal Desk') Kurian calls for active registration under NFDP (See 'Corp Brief') PMLA - Provisions of PMLA over other statutes related to property encumbrances; attachment of property is tenable where it is acquired through proceeds of crime: SAFEMA TRIBUNAL (See 'Legal Desk') DPIIT, Primus Partners Pvt. Ltd. ink MoU to bolster startup ecosystem (See 'Corp Brief') PBPT Act - a land sale is indeed a benami transaction, where payment is made by beneficial owner for future benefit of her family, while land is registered in name of somebody else: SAFEMA Tribunal (See 'Legal Desk') DPIIT, Kotak Mahindra Bank ink MoU to enhance financial & non-financial support for startups (See 'Corp Brief') IBC/RTI - CPIO not required to generate, interpret, or explain records; appeal against FAA's order is not tenable where all relevant information is provided: IBBI (See 'Legal Desk') Centre plans inspection drives and field verification to ensure compliance (See 'Corp Brief') India continues to rank 3rd in Annual Forest Gain (See 'Corp Brief') RERA - Promoters are mandatorily required to comply with statutory condition of pre-deposit u/s 43(5) of Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016 before appeal can be entertained: HC (See 'Legal Desk') Government intervention and Corporate governance (See CORP EINSICHT) Prof Sood launched 'AI Playbooks for Agriculture and SMEs' (See 'Corp Brief') SARFAESI - Once scheme of arrangement is sanctioned in particular manner and is acted upon, it is no longer permissible for secured creditor to resile therefrom unilaterally: HC (See 'Legal Desk') CCI nod to Setu AIF Trust to acquire stakes in Edelweiss Asset & Edelweiss Trusteeship (See 'Corp Brief') IPR - Mere adoption of product-by-process format would not result in novel product being downgraded to Section 48(b) of Patent Act: HC (See 'Legal Desk') CSIR hosts Capacity Building Workshop for Dissemination of Indian Knowledge System (See 'Corp Brief') Competition Act - issues pertaining to unauthorized business operations, public health & regulatory violations, not demonstrating any anti-competitive agreement or concerted action u/s 3 of the Act, cannot be looked into by CCI: CCI (See 'Legal Desk') 12 lakh Railway Employees working Day and Night during Festive Season: Vaishnaw (See 'Corp Brief') A&C - Restrictions contained in Code of Civil Procedure apply even in cases relating to enforcement of foreign arbitral awards: HC (See 'Legal Desk') Ministry of Mines introduces Timelines to Fast-track Operationalisation of Auctioned Blocks (See 'Corp Brief') RTI/IBC - Mechanism of the RTI Act cannot be commandeered for grievance redressal, policy suggestions, or compelling interpretations of prior responses: IBBI (See 'Legal Desk') Supreme Court Restores JSW's Resolution Plan in Bhushan Power Case: A Pragmatic Turn in IBC Jurisprudence (See CORP EINSICHT ) BSNL turns profitable after 18 Years: Scindia (See 'Corp Brief') IBC - Withdrawal of CIRP cannot be permitted merely on the basis of a unilateral settlement with one minor creditor, particularly when other bigger Financial Creditors oppose it: NCLT (See 'Legal Desk') Chouhan to meet Ministers of 11 Ministries for 'Pradhan Mantri Dhan-Dhaanya Krishi Yojana' (See 'Corp Brief') SEBI - PayTM founder held guilty of circumventing SEBI regulations to unlawfully grant ESOPs to self and brother by mis-representing promoter status and control - contravened disclosure & eligibility norms of SEBI - barred from accepting ESOPs for three-year period: SEBI (See 'Legal Desk') NITI Aayog's Women Entrepreneurship Platform and DP World launch 'We Rise' initiative (See 'Corp Brief') A&C - Mere pendency of formal signature by one party, when other party has signed agreement after reading its terms including arbitration clause, does not prevent parties from being referred to arbitration: HC (See 'Legal Desk') MoS unveils Curtain Raiser for 4-day India International Science Festival (See 'Corp Brief') PMLA - Secured creditor such as finance company not left without remedy, where properties acquired even prior to scheduled offence period are attached as value equivalent: SAFEMA Tribunal (See 'Legal Desk')

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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.

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