**Executive Summary**
The Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) Monthly Bulletin for April 2026, released by the Ministry of Statistics & Programme Implementation (MoSPI) on May 15, 2026, provides key labor market estimates using the Current Weekly Status (CWS) approach. The report highlights a stable urban Worker Population Ratio (WPR) and a significant decline in the urban female Unemployment Rate (UR) to its lowest level since April 2025. This thirteenth monthly bulletin in the series is based on a survey of 3,74,243 persons across rural and urban India.
**Key Points / Main Content**
**Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR)**
* **Overall LFPR:** The rate for persons aged 15 and above stood at 55.0% in April 2026, showing a slight moderation from 55.4% in March 2026 and 55.6% in April 2025.
* **Regional Variation:** Rural LFPR was recorded at 57.5%, while urban LFPR stood at 50.1%.
* **Female Participation:** The overall female LFPR moderated to 33.9% in April 2026. While rural female LFPR remained unchanged year-on-year, the urban female LFPR declined by 0.7 percentage points over the same period.
**Worker Population Ratio (WPR)**
* **Urban Stability:** The urban WPR for persons aged 15 and above remained unchanged at 46.8% compared to March 2026.
* **Overall Trends:** The national WPR was estimated at 52.2% in April 2026, a slight decrease from 52.6% in the previous month and 52.8% in April 2025.
* **Rural WPR:** The ratio stood at 54.9%, down from 55.5% in March 2026.
**Unemployment Rate (UR)**
* **National Average:** The overall UR remained broadly stable at 5.2% in April 2026, compared to 5.1% in March 2026.
* **Urban Improvements:** Urban UR eased to 6.6% from 6.8% in the previous month. Notably, the urban female UR declined to 8.5%, marking a one-year low.
* **Rural UR:** The rural unemployment rate saw a slight increase, rising to 4.6% in April 2026 from 4.3% in March 2026.
* **Gender-Specific Trends:** The urban male UR declined from 6.1% to 5.9% over the month.
**Survey Methodology and Sample**
* **Sample Size:** Monthly estimates are derived from 3,74,243 surveyed persons (2,13,027 in rural areas and 1,61,216 in urban areas).
* **Reporting Frequency:** Following a methodology modification in January 2025, the NSO now provides these estimates on a monthly and quarterly basis.
**Impact Analysis**
**National Statistical Office (NSO) and MoSPI**
* **Impact:** The successful completion of the thirteenth monthly bulletin demonstrates the continued implementation of the modified 2025 survey methodology.
* **Action Required:** Continue monthly data collection and publication to maintain the time series for labour force indicators.
**Policy Makers and Economists**
* **Impact:** They receive high-frequency data showing stable urban employment but a slight softening in overall labour force participation and an uptick in rural unemployment.
* **Action Required:** Analyze the divergence between rural and urban unemployment trends to determine if specific regional interventions are necessary.
**Urban Female Labour Force**
* **Impact:** This demographic is experiencing a positive trend, with the unemployment rate reaching its lowest level in over a year.
* **Action Required:** Stakeholders should monitor if the "broad stability" in participation and declining unemployment leads to long-term increased female integration into the urban workforce.
**General Public and Researchers**
* **Impact:** Interested parties have access to updated, granular data on employment conditions across gender and regional lines.
* **Action Required:** Access the full Monthly Bulletin for April 2026 via the Ministry’s official website or the provided QR code for detailed analysis.
Key Entities Referenced
Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS): The primary survey conducted to provide monthly and quarterly estimates of labour force indicators, including employment and unemployment conditions.
Ministry of Statistics & Programme Implementation (MoSPI): The central ministry responsible for the oversight, publication, and data collection of periodic labour market indicators.
National Statistical Office (NSO): The specific statistical body under MoSPI tasked with conducting the Periodic Labour Force Survey.
Current Weekly Status (CWS): The technical methodology and approach used to estimate key labour market indicators such as LFPR, WPR, and UR.
Ministry of Statistics & Programme Implementation
PERIODIC LABOUR FORCE SURVEY (PLFS)
MONTHLY BULLETIN April, 2026
Urban WPR remains stable
Urban Female UR falls to one-year low
Posted On: 15 MAY 2026 4:00PM by PIB Delhi
Snapshot:
Overall LFPR (15+ years) stood at 55.0% in April, 2026, compared to 55.4% in March, 2026 and
55.6% in April, 2025.
Female LFPR (15+ years) was estimated at 33.9% in April, 2026, against 34.4% in March, 2026.
The corresponding estimate was 34.2% in April, 2025.
Overall WPR (15+ years) stood at 52.2% in April, 2026, compared to 52.6% in March, 2026.
Urban WPR (15+ years) remained unchanged at 46.8% in April, 2026 compared to the previous
month.
Urban UR (15+ years) eased marginally to 6.6% in April, 2026 from 6.8% in March, 2026.
Urban female UR (15+ years) declined to 8.5% in April, 2026, the lowest level recorded since
April, 2025.
A. Introduction
The Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) conducted by NSO, MoSPI, is the primary source of data on
activity participation and employment and unemployment conditions of the population. The PLFS survey
methodology has been modified from January, 2025 to provide monthly and quarterly estimates of labour
force indicators for the country.
Monthly results of PLFS are released in the form of Monthly Bulletins. It presents estimates of key labour
market indicators viz. Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR), Worker Population Ratio (WPR) and
Unemployment Rate (UR) at the all-India level following the Current Weekly Status (CWS) approach.
The Monthly Bulletins for April, 2025 to March, 2026 have already been released. The present Monthly
Bulletin for April, 2026 is the thirteenth in the series.
Key findings for persons of age 15 years and above following CWS:
Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR) shows slight softening:The Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR) for persons aged 15 years and above reported as 55.0%
in April, 2026, compared to 55.4% in March, 2026. In rural and urban areas, LFPR was recorded at
57.5% and 50.1%, respectively.
Compared to April, 2025 (55.6%), the overall LFPR remained lower by 0.6 percentage points. Rural
and urban LFPR also recorded declines of 0.5 and 0.6 percentage points, respectively, over the year.
In April, 2026, LFPR records marginal moderation on a year-on-year basis
Female labour force participation moderates marginally:
Female Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR) for age 15 years and above stood at 33.9% in April,
2026, against 34.4% in March, 2026. Female LFPR in rural and urban areas was recorded at 38.2%
and 25.0%, respectively.
Compared to April, 2025, the overall female LFPR declined marginally by 0.3 percentage points from
34.2% to 33.9%. Rural female LFPR remained unchanged, while urban female LFPR recorded a
decline of 0.7 percentage points over the year.
Female labour force participation in urban areas exhibits broad stability
Urban WPR maintained stability:The Worker Population Ratio (WPR) for persons aged 15 years and above in urban areas remained
unchanged at 46.8% in April, 2026, the same level as recorded in March, 2026. The overall WPR was
estimated at 52.2% in April, 2026, compared to 52.6% in March, 2026 and 52.8% in April, 2025. In
rural areas, the WPR stood at 54.9% in April, 2026, compared to 55.5% in March, 2026 and 55.4% in
April, 2025.
Urban WPR continued to exhibit stability in April, 2026Overall Unemployment Rate (UR) shows a broad stability:
The Unemployment Rate (UR) among persons of age 15 years and above remained broadly stable at
5.2% in April, 2026, compared to 5.1% in both March, 2026 and April, 2025. Urban UR eased
marginally to 6.6% in April, 2026 from 6.8% in March, 2026, while the rural UR increased slightly to
4.6% from 4.3% during the same period. UR in both rural and urban areas maintained broadly the same
level on year-on-year comparison.
Overall unemployment rate remained broadly stable over the year
Urban UR moderated:
The Unemployment Rate (UR) among male aged 15 years and above stood at 5.1% in April, 2026,
compared to 5.0% in March, 2026 and 5.2% in April, 2025. Rural male UR estimated at 4.4% in
March, 2026 against 4.7% in April, 2026. The urban male UR declined from 6.1% to 5.9% during the
same period. On a year-on-year basis, overall male UR was lower by 0.1 percentage point.
The UR among female aged 15 years and above was recorded at 5.4% in April, 2026, compared to
5.3% in March, 2026 and 5.0% in April, 2025. Rural female UR stood at 4.1% compared to 4.4% over
the month. The urban female UR declined from 9.0% to 8.5%. Compared to April, 2025, overall female
UR was higher by 0.4 percentage points.Urban female UR recorded its lowest level since April, 2025
At the all-India level, the monthly estimates are based on information collected from a total
number of 3,74,243 persons surveyed.
persons surveyed in rural areas persons surveyed in urban areas
2,13,027 1,61,216
The Monthly Bulletin for April, 2026 is Scan QR code to access MoSPI Publications/
available on the Ministry's website (https://ww Reports
w.mospi.gov.in).
Click here to see pdf
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