Recent data from the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) KLEMS database highlights unprecedented employment growth and productivity gains under the Modi government, marking a marked departure from the trends observed during the UPA era. is

The RBI KLEMS database, which tracks key metrics such as capital, labor, energy, materials, and services in production, provides comprehensive employment estimates for both the public and private sectors.

According to the latest data, between 2004 and 2014, the UPA government added only 2.9 crore jobs. However, under the Modi government, 17.19 crore new jobs were created between 2014 and 2024, including a record 4.6 crore jobs in the last year alone.

Trends in employment growth

• During the UPA era (2004-2014), employment grew by only 6%.
• Under the Modi government (2014-2024), employment increased by 36 percent, reflecting the impact of targeted economic and employment policies.

Sector wise employment highlights

Insights from the RBI KLEMS database reveal sectoral variations in employment growth:

• Agriculture: Employment declined by 16% between 2004 and 2014 during the UPA regime but rebounded with 19% growth under the Modi government (2014-2023).
• Manufacturing: Growth was a meager 6% under UPA but accelerated to 15% under Modi.
• Services: Employment grew by 25 percent under the UPA but rose by another 36 percent under the Modi government, reflecting the growing contribution of the services sector to the economy.

Unemployment and Labor Force Trends

India’s unemployment rate has seen a sharp decline, falling from 6% in 2017-18 to 3.2% in 2023-24, while the labor force participation rate (WPR) increased from 46.8% to 58.2%. done

The labor force participation rate (LFPR) also improved, rising from 49.8 per cent in 2017-18 to 60.1 per cent in 2023-24.

Youth employment and employment

There has been substantial growth in employment and employment of Indian youth:

• Job Qualification: According to the India Skill Report, the employability of graduates has increased from 33.95 percent in 2013 to 54.81 percent in 2024, thanks to skill initiatives and education reforms.
• Youth employment rate: Youth employment increased from 31.4 percent in 2017-18 to 41.7 percent in 2023-24, while the youth unemployment rate declined from 17.8 percent to 10.2 percent during the same period.
• The formal job marketBetween September 2017 and September 2024, over 4.7 crore youth (aged 18-28) joined the EPFO ​​fold, indicating a significant expansion in formal employment opportunities.

The RBI KLEMS framework, which assesses productivity growth by measuring total factor productivity (TFP) along with key production inputs, indicates that improvements in labor quality and capital structure complement robust job creation. has been done These trends highlight the effectiveness of initiatives like “Make in India,” “Skill India” and infrastructure investment in boosting productivity and economic growth.