Press Note On Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) Quarterly Bulletin July-September 2026

Key Highlights:

• The Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) for July-September 2026 reported an increase in overall Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR) to 55.5%.
• Overall Worker Population Ratio (WPR) rose to 52.7%, marking a 1.0 percentage point increase over the previous quarter.
• The overall Unemployment Rate (UR) declined to 5.1% from 5.4% in the preceding quarter.
• Rural UR specifically decreased to 4.3%, while rural agricultural employment increased to 56.7%.
• Female LFPR improved to 34.7% and female WPR rose to 32.8% during the quarter.
• Approximately 57.9 crore persons aged 15 years and above were employed in India during July-September 2026.

Detailed Insights:

• The PLFS methodology was revamped from January 2025 to provide monthly and quarterly labour force indicators for both rural and urban India under the Current Weekly Status (CWS) framework.
• Rural LFPR increased to 58.1%, while urban LFPR marginally rose to 50.4% in the current quarter.
• Rural WPR saw a significant increase to 55.6%, whereas urban WPR remained stable at 46.9%.
• The share of self-employed workers in rural areas increased to 62.7%, and regular wage/salaried employment in urban areas rose to 49.6%.
• Casual labour employment declined in both rural and urban areas compared to the previous quarter and the previous year.
• The rural workforce predominantly remained in agriculture, which saw an increased share, while the urban workforce concentrated in the tertiary sector remained stable.

Key Concepts Involved:

• Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS): A survey conducted by NSO, MoSPI, to estimate employment and unemployment indicators in India.
• Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR): The percentage of persons in the labour force (working or seeking work) in the population.
• Worker Population Ratio (WPR): The percentage of employed persons in the total population.
• Unemployment Rate (UR): The percentage of unemployed persons among the total labour force.
• Current Weekly Status (CWS): The activity status of a person determined with reference to a recall period of seven days preceding the date of survey.