NITI Aayog denies “Unemployment At 45-Year High”
NEW DELHI :A yet-to-be-released report that says the country’s unemployment rate rose to a 45-year-high in 2017-18 is “not verified” and the “veracity of the data is not known”, NITI Aayog vice chairman Rajiv Kumar said today.
The clarification came as the government faced opposition attacks over the National Sample Survey Office (NSSO)’s periodic labour force survey (PLFS), withheld by the government but accessed by the Business Standard newspaper.
The damning report, revealed a day before the government’s interim Budget, sets up a huge controversy just ahead of the national election, due by May.
According to the report, the National Sample Survey Office conducted between July 2017-June 2018 showed the unemployment rate at 6.1 percent, the highest since 1972-73. Unemployment was higher in the urban areas (7.8 per cent) than in the rural areas (5.3 per cent). The report also says youth unemployment is at “astronomically high” levels of 13 to 27 per cent. The report says more people are withdrawing from the workforce as the labour force participation rate is lower than in the previous years.
The government fielded its two top plan panel officers, Rajiv Kumar and Niti Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant, for damage control as opposition leaders, including Rahul Gandhi, targeted the government.”You can’t be growing at 7.2 per cent and say no jobs are being created. To my mind, the major problem is the lack of quality jobs. The country needs roughly about 7 million jobs,” said Amitabh Kant, adding that that demand was being met.Mr Kant said: “Our own internal analysis shows we are creating 7.8 million jobs. A whole lot of people are exiting low productivity jobs in agriculture. Aspirational people want better paying jobs.”
NITI Aayog Vice-Chairman Rajiv Kumar on unemployment report: Retorting to Congress chief Rahul Gandhi’s tweet, which stressed on the unemployment rate in India that was highest in 2017-’18 at 6.1%, NITI Aayog on Thursday, January 31, said the report is not the final one and the official data is still supposed to be upgraded, media reports said. The report was quoted by Mr Gandhi in his tweet, which said India’s unemployment rate stood at 45-year-high at 6.1%, according to the National Sample Survey Office.
Responding to the latest development ahead of the interim Budget, due to be presented on Friday, February 1, NITI Aayog Vice-Chairman Rajiv Kumar clarified that India could not have witnessed 7% growth if unemployment had been on the surge. Without mentioning the Opposition party, he said there has been a confusion spearheaded by those using employment report which has been pervaded but has not been finalised.
Facts reviewed by the media reports said that the unemployment rate was at its soaring pace since the 1972-’73 period. According to the survey, the unemployment rate stood at 2.2% in 2011-’12 in comparison to 2017-18, during the UPA’s second tenure. To this, NITI Aayog boss Mr Kant restated Kumar’s comment, that it was incorrect to compare the latest NSSO data with 2011-12 because the sample size used earlier was way different from today’s. Post-demonetisation, unemployment rate rose to 45-year high of 6.1%, says NSSO’s survey of 2017-18.
NSSO survey shows unemployment rate at four-decade high of 6.1% in 2017-18: A report published by the National Sample Survey Office’s (NSSO) has shown that the country’s unemployment rate is at 45-year-high of 6.1 per cent in 2017-18 after demonetisation. Citing concerns over delay on the release of jobs related data, NSC chairperson PC Mohanan and JV Meenakshi tendered their resignations. The NSSO report was revealed a day before the Interim Budget, which may help the Opposition to stage a controversy ahead of the Lok Sabha elections 2019 over the jobs and unemployment.
The unemployment rate in 2017-18 was at its highest level since 1972-73 while in 2002, the unemployment rate stood at 2,2 per cent. Youth unemployment at astronomically high levels of 13-27% while more people moving out of the workforce. The unemployment rate was at its highest level since 1972-73 as published in a report accessed by the Business Standard.The NSSO report has claimed that in the year 2011-12, the unemployment rate was 2.2 % and youth unemployment is top 13 to 27%. Joblessness was higher in urban areas 7.8 % than in the rural areas 5.3 %.
Among the jobs that have been created, he said, are those offered by cab aggregators Ola and Uber.
The job data is significant because this was the first comprehensive assessment of jobs in the country, after the November 2016 demonetisation, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi declared an overnight ban on the highest-value notes.The report was not released despite being vetted by the National Statistical Commission in December, allege two non-independent members who quit the data collating body on Tuesday. One of them is acting chairman PC Mohanan, who confirmed that one of the reasons why he quit was the delay in the release of the NSSO Periodic Labour Force Survey report. The government said: “We have explained to the members that decision to release the report will be ours. We will decide when this should happen.”( With Agency Inputs ).
