The central government has recently informed Parliament about unemployment benefits being provided under various central schemes to unemployed youth in the country.
In the Parliament’s winter session, which concluded last week, parliamentarian GC Chandrashekhar asked the government about plans to introduce a scheme offering unemployment allowances to unemployed youth in the country to help them cope with high inflation. He also sought to know if the government had drafted any proposal in this regard, and if so the current status of the draft.
Replying to the member’s queries, Minister of State for Labour and Employment Shobha Karandlaje stated that employment generation coupled with welfare of the youth is a priority of the government and is a continuous and dynamic process.
The minister in her reply said that under the Atal Beemit Vyakti Kalyan Yojana (ABVKY) of Employees’ State Insurance Corporation (ESIC), the unemployment benefit is paid to insured workers who lose their job, as per eligibility.
“The unemployment benefit under the ABVKY has been enhanced to 50% from 25% of the average daily earning, payable upto 90 days, alongwith relaxation of eligibility conditions to claim the benefit for insured workers,” she added.
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Unemployment trends in the country
The Labour Ministry, citing a report, claims that India has witnessed significant employment growth over the years. The government says with the employment increased by nearly 36%, adding around 170 million jobs during 2016-17 and 2022-23, India’s economic trajectory demonstrates sustained job creation across key sectors.
Recent data and economic analysis challenge the notion of “jobless growth” in India, a concept that suggests GDP growth occurs without corresponding increases in employment, the ministry said in a release in October. A recent report from Observer Research Foundation titled ‘Busting the myth of jobless growth: Insights from data, theory, and logic’ explains the employment trends in India over the years to present a different story.
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According to the report, the unemployment rate in the country has fallen from 6% in 2017-18 to 3.2% in 2022-23.
Employment data from the Reserve Bank of India’s KLEMS database,
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