Economy opens but joblessness still rises

| | New Delhi
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Economy opens but joblessness still rises

Monday, 30 August 2021 | Rajesh Kumar | New Delhi

Economy opens but joblessness still rises

Unemployment up to 8.1% in Aug as against 6.95% in July

The national unemployment rate rose to 8.1 per cent in the week ended August 28 as against 6.95 per cent in July.

This is despite the fact that most of the States and Union Territories have fully reopened their economy after a decline in the ferocity of the second Covid-19 wave.

Rural unemployment took a sharp upward turn to 7.3 per cent from 6.34 per cent and urban joblessness rose to 9.7 per cent from 8.30 per cent during the same period. Experts and economists have been arguing that decent jobs are still missing, and their return will depend on the revival in the economy, growth in consumption and the pandemic situation.

The Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE) data show that unemployment remained between 7.16 per cent and 8.07 per cent at the national level from August 5 to August 28. Urban unemployment was registered between 8.38 per cent and 9.71 per cent while rural unemployment remained between 6.53 per cent and 7.31 per cent during the same period. According to the CMIE, the unemployment percentage in Haryana was 28.1, the highest in the country followed by 21 per cent each in Goa and Rajasthan.

According to experts, even so, unemployment, mainly due to the effects of restrictions imposed due to the pandemic, remains high. But though most of the sectors have started resuming functioning gradually, the percentage of unemployment in India is still high.

Since the beginning of July, unemployment in urban India has stayed below 9 per cent, and at the national level, it has remained under 8 per cent. The unemployment scenario in July is relatively better than the previous three months when India battled the second wave of the coronavirus pandemic. The progress of the monsoon and the reopening of economic activity across formal and informal sectors have contributed to a comparatively better situation in July.

In June, the monthly unemployment rate was 9.17 per cent at the national level, 10.07 per cent in urban India, and 8.75 per cent in rural India.

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