India's unemployment rate rises slightly to 5% in Jan-26

The Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) data showed that India’s Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR) shows steady trend. The overall LFPR among persons of age 15 years and above reported as 55.9% in January, 2026. Rural LFPR was 58.7% in January, 2026 compared to 59.0% in December, 2025. Urban LFPR observed as 50.3% in January, 2026, against 50.2% in December, 2025. Female Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR) in January, 2026 reported as 35.1%. Rural female LFPR was found as 39.7% in January, 2026, while urban female LFPR reached to 25.5% during the month.

The overall Worker Population Ratio (WPR) in the age group 15 years and above exhibited a broad stability in January, 2026. Following a gradual increase in rural WPR since June, 2025 (53.3%) to December, 2025 (56.7%), it declined marginally to 56.2% in January, 2026. In rural areas, the male and female WPR stood at 75.7% and 38.0%, respectively, in January, 2026, compared to 76.0% and 38.6% in December, 2025. Urban WPR, on the other hand, remained stable across genders and was recorded as 70.5% for male, 23.0% for female and 46.8% at the person level in January, 2026.

Data showed that Unemployment Rate (UR) marked a modest increase. The UR among persons of age 15 years and above rose slightly to 5.0% in January, 2026 from 4.8% in December, 2025. The rural UR edged up from 3.9% to 4.2%, while urban UR increased from 6.7% to 7.0% during December, 2025 to January, 2026. Among male aged 15 years and above, the UR continued to remain stable in January, 2026. In contrast, the female UR in the same age group was comparatively higher in January, 2026 than in December, 2025. However, the female UR remains within the range observed during the period April to December, 2025.

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