NEW DELHI: The July 2025 data, while numerical, is much more than a statistical summary. It marks incremental progress in labour force engagement, especially for women and rural populations, and signals the broader direction of India’s economy.
According to the Ministry of Statistics, the Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR) among people aged 15 and above climbed to 54.9 per cent, up from 54.2 per cent in June.
The shifts, though numerical on the surface, traced the outline of the country’s evolving workforce and offered insight into the heart of the Indian economy.
Rural and urban divide
Across the country, patterns in work differ between villages and cities. In rural India, the LFPR reached an impressive 56.9 per cent in July, reflecting the significant proportion of the population continually engaged in or seeking employment.
The Worker Participation Rate (WPR) followed a similar trend: in rural areas, it increased to 54.4 per cent from June’s 53.3 per cent, highlighting a month-on-month growth in active employment.
Urban centers showed advancement, too. The urban LFPR was reported at 50.7 per cent for July among people aged 15 and above, and the corresponding WPR in urban locales edged up to 47.0 per cent, from 46.8 per cent in the previous month.
These upward trends suggest more individuals in both rural and urban contributions to the labor market, reinforcing overall employment prospects.
One notable detail in the data is the difference between rural and urban female participation. In July, rural women’s WPR was 35.5 per cent, while urban women’s rate remained at 23.5 per cent. At the national level, the total female WPR for those aged 15 and above stood at 31.6 per cent.
Step by step, these incremental gains marked a gradual strengthening of female inclusion in India’s economic activities—especially visible in villages.
Declining unemployment rate
July also brought relief with an improved jobs situation. The unemployment rate (UR) among those aged 15 and above dropped to 5.2 per cent, after being 5.6 per cent in June.
Looking at the broader quarter from April to June 2025, the UR for both men and women was 5.4 per cent, but with a distinct urban-rural divide: rural unemployment stood at 4.8 per cent, while urban unemployment was notably higher at 6.8 per cent.
These variations pointed to greater economic resilience and job creation in the countryside compared to cities over this period.
A deeper look into sectors showed familiar patterns. In rural India, agriculture remained the backbone, employing 44.6 per cent of rural men and a significant 70.9 per cent of rural women. Urban employment was led by the tertiary (services) sector, absorbing 60.6 per cent of men and 64.9 per cent of women in city settings.
On the whole, during this quarter, 56.4 crore Indians aged 15 and above were employed: 39.7 crore men and 16.7 crore women.
Starting January 2025, the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) was redesigned to better capture monthly workforce trends across both rural and urban India using the Current Weekly Status (CWS) approach.
The new methodology allows for monthly, quarterly, and annual snapshots of LFPR, WPR, and UR, providing more granularity and timely insights about shifts in the job market.
