This document summarizes the Indian government's response to a parliamentary question regarding unemployment among educated youth in the country, as of August 4, 2025. The Ministry of Labour and Employment acknowledges the issue and cites data from the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS), conducted by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI). The unemployment rate (UR) for individuals aged 15 years and above has decreased from 6.0% in 2017-18 to 3.2% in 2023-24. The UR for youth aged 15-29 years has also decreased from 17.8% in 2017-18 to 10.2% in 2023-24. State/Union Territory-wise details, including data on educated unemployed youth, are available in the PLFS reports at https://www.mospi.gov.in/download-reportsmaincatODU5catAllsubcategoryAllc.
The government states that employment generation and improved employability are priorities. To address unemployment, the government is implementing various schemes and programs, including: Prime Minister's Employment Generation Programme (PMEGP), Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM), Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Grameen Kaushalya Yojana (DDU-GKY), Rural Self Employment and Training Institutes (RSETIs), Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Urban Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NULM), PM Street Vendor's AtmaNirbhar Nidhi (PM SVANidhi), Stand-up India Scheme, Start-up India, Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana (PMMY), and Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY). Details of these schemes are available at https://dge.gov.in/dge-schemes-programmes. Additionally, the Union Cabinet has approved the Employment Linked Incentive (ELI) Scheme to support employment generation, enhance employability, and improve social security, with a focus on the manufacturing sector. The Ministry of Labour and Employment also operates the National Career Service (NCS) Portal (www.ncs.gov.in), a one-stop platform for career-related services, including job information, job fairs, career counseling, vocational guidance, and skill development courses.
Key Entities Referenced
Ministry of Labour and Employment: A ministry of the Government of India responsible for labour and employment policies.
Lok Sabha: The lower house of the Parliament of India.
SHRI MALVINDER SINGH KANG: A member of parliament who raised a question about unemployed youth.
SUSHRI SHOBHA KARANDLAJE: Minister of State for Labour and Employment who provided the answer to the question.
Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation: A ministry of the Government of India responsible for statistical data collection and analysis.
Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS): A survey conducted by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation to collect data on employment and unemployment.
Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS): An Indian labour law and social security measure that aims to guarantee the 'right to work'.
National Career Service (NCS) Portal: A portal run by the Ministry of Labour and Employment, Government of India, providing career-related services.
GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
MINISTRY OF LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT
LOK SABHA
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 2392
TO BE ANSWERED ON 04TH AUGUST, 2025
UNEMPLOYED YOUTH IN THE COUNTRY
2392. SHRI MALVINDER SINGH KANG:
Will the Minister of LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT be pleased to state:
(a) whether Government are aware of a large number of educated
unemployed youth in the country;
(b) if so, the details thereof State/UT-wise; and
(c) the details of the steps taken/being taken by the Government to tackle
the problem of unemployment?
ANSWER
MINISTER OF STATE FOR LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT
(SUSHRI SHOBHA KARANDLAJE)
(a) & (b): The official data on Employment and Unemployment is collected
through Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS), which is conducted by Ministry
of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) since 2017-18.
As per the latest available Annual PLFS reports, the estimated
Unemployment Rate (UR) on usual status for persons of age 15 years and
above has decreased from 6.0% in 2017-18 to 3.2% in 2023-24. Similarly, the
UR for youth aged 15–29 years has dropped from 17.8% in 2017-18 to 10.2%
in 2023-24.
State/UT-wise detailed information, including data on educated unemployed
youth in the country are available in the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS)
reports, which may be seen at https://www.mospi.gov.in/download-
reports?main_cat=ODU5&cat=All&sub_category=All(c): Employment generation coupled with improving employability including
youth is a priority of the Government. Accordingly, Government is
implementing various employment generation schemes/ programmes. These
inter-alia include Prime Minister’s Employment Generation Programme
(PMEGP), Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme
(MGNREGS), Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana- National Rural Livelihoods
Mission (DAY-NRLM), Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Grameen Kaushalya Yojana
(DDU-GKY), Rural Self Employment and Training Institutes (RSETIs), Deen
Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Urban Livelihoods Mission (DAY-
NULM), PM Street Vendor’s AtmaNirbhar Nidhi (PM SVANidhi), Stand-up India
Scheme, Start Up India , Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana (PMMY), Pradhan
Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY), etc. The details of various
employment generation schemes/programmes being implemented by the
Government may be seen at https://dge.gov.in/dge/schemes_programmes.
In addition, the Union Cabinet has approved the Employment Linked
Incentive (ELI) Scheme to support employment generation, enhance
employability and social security across all sectors, with special focus on
the manufacturing sector.
Further, Ministry of Labour and Employment, Government of India is running
the National Career Service (NCS) Portal which is a one-stop solution for
providing career related services including information on jobs from private
and government sectors, information on online & offline job fairs, job search
& matching, career counselling, vocational guidance, information on skill
development courses, employability enhancement programmes, etc. through
a digital platform[www.ncs.gov.in].
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