Abstract

The objective of PLFS is primarily on two aspects. The first is to measure the dynamics in labour force participation and employment status in the short time interval of three months for the urban areas only in the Current Weekly Status (CWS). Thus, in every quarter, PLFS will bring out the level and change estimates of the key labour force indicators in CWS viz. Worker Population Ratio (WPR), Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR), Unemployment Rate (UR). Secondly, for both rural and urban areas, level estimates of all important parameters in both usual status and CWS will be brought out annually.

Geographic coverage

12800 FSUs (7024 villages and 5776 UFS blocks) will be covered annually at all-India level.

Sampling procedure

A rotational panel sampling design will be used in urban area. The rotational scheme will be of two years duration to accommodate the changes in the urban frame in the intracensal period; in the sense that the sampling frames for both rural and urban areas will remain unchanged for every two-year duration. In this rotational panel scheme each selected household in urban areas will be visited four times – one with first visit schedule and other three with revisit schedule. The estimates can be given for successive quarters without any break in the series (starting from the fifth quarter), ensuring a 75% matching between consecutive quarters. Regression based estimates will not be generated. Instead, usual traditional design based estimates will be generated. The proposed design aims at generating quarterly estimates of level and change parameters of some important labour force indicators (LFPR, WPR & UR) based on CWS data in urban areas and annual estimates of level parameters based on usual status for both rural and urban areas in the line of employment & unemployment survey of NSS quinquennial round.

Rotational panel design for urban areas

i. The rotational panel will be for two years, where only 25% FSUs of urban annual allocation will be covered in the first quarter (Panel P41) of the fourth two year panel with detail listing and canvassing of visit 1 schedule in the selected households; where Pij indicates the panel belonging to jth quarter of the ith two-year period of rotation. ii. Another 25% FSUs will be covered in the second quarter (Panel P42) for taking up visit 1 schedule and revisit schedule will be canvassed in the selected households of Panel P41. iii. A new panel P43 of 25% FSUs will be surveyed in third quarter with visit 1 schedule and revisit schedules will be canvassed in the households of panels P41 & P42. iv. In the fourth quarter, households of panels P41, P42 & P43 will be surveyed with revisit schedule and a new panel P44 with 25% FSUs for visit 1 schedule. v. In the subsequent quarters of second year of the third two year panel, 75% FSUs (3 panels – P42, P43 & P44) will be common and an earlier panel (P41) will be replaced by a new panel (P45) for canvassing visit 1 schedule. This will continue till 8th quarter of the fourth two year panel. vi. All the FSUs of the panels P41, P42, ...., P48 (each of which is with 25% of FSUs) will be selected before commencement of survey in the first quarter. vii. At the end of the second year of each two-year duration, updated frame will be used for both rural and urban areas. viii. FSUs of another set of panels P51, P52, ..., P58 selected from the updated frame will be made ready before commencement of first quarter of fifth two year panel. These panels P51 to P58 will take care of the changes in the urban frame during the intracensal period. ix. In the ninth quarter (first quarter of fifth two year panel), panel P51 selected from the updated frame will be introduced and the panels P46, P47 and P48 of the old frame will be surveyed. x. This scheme will continue for another 2 years with the introduction of panels P52 to P58 each in one quarter for the subsequent 7 quarters till the end of the fifth two year panel. xi. Since major changes in the rural-urban frame occurs in the Census years, provision is to be made to generate estimates without break in the series of estimates considering panels from pre and post-census frames.

Rural samples

For rural areas, samples for all the 8 quarters will be selected before commencement of survey for each two-year period, while the frame remains same for this duration. Samples are drawn independently for each quarter in the form of independent sub-samples. In each quarter, only 25% FSUs of annual allocation (as is done in each sub-round of NSS rounds) will be covered in rural areas so that independent estimates can be generated for each quarter. For this purpose, quarterly allocation will be multiple of 2 for drawing interpenetrating sub-samples. There will not be any revisit in the rural samples.

Mode of data collection

Face to Face

This dataset presents national-level literacy rates, compiled from multiple official sources, including the National Sample Survey (NSS), Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS), Population Census, National Family Health Survey (NFHS), and data published by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI).

It provides literacy rates disaggregated by gender, region (urban and rural), and age group. The inclusion of age groups is essential, as the criteria for calculating literacy rates have changed over time. To allow consistent comparisons across sources and years, an ‘age group’ column is included in the dataset. In general, literacy is assessed based on whether a person above a specified age can read and write a simple message with understanding in at least one language. The age specified as per these sources is as follows:

Census: Population aged 7 years and above (used since 1981; previously, it was 5 years and above). Data is available for 1951, 1961, 1971, 1981, 1991, 2001, and 2011 NSS: Population aged 5 years and above. Data is available for 2005, 2007-08, 2010, 2011-12, 2014, and 2017-18 PLFS: Survey typically covers population aged 15 years and above, but literacy data is also available for 5 years and above and 7 years and above. Data is available for 2017-18 to 2023-24. NFHS: Covers population aged 15–49 years only. Literacy rate refers to women and men who have completed standard 6, 9, or higher, or those who can read a full or partial sentence among individuals assumed to be literate. Data is available for 2005-06, 2015-16, and 2019-21. MoSPI: Follows the NSS age criteria, usually 5 years and above. Data is available for 2003, 2004, 2006, 2007, and 2011

This dataset provides the Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR) in percentage according to usual status (ps+ss) for each State and Union Territory in India, segmented by age groups: 15-29 years, 15-59 years, 15 years and above, and all ages. Sourced from the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) conducted by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, it captures labor force engagement across various demographic age ranges. Note: For 2023-24, Chandigarh's entire area has been considered urban for this survey, and this year includes only the age groups 15-59 years, 15 years and above, and all ages. Before 2019-20, Ladakh was part of Jammu and Kashmir, and since 2020-21, Daman and Diu has been merged with Dadra and Nagar Haveli to form the union territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu.

This dataset provides the Unemployment Rate (UR) in percentage according to usual status (ps+ss) for each State and Union Territory in India, categorized by age groups: 15-29 years, 15-59 years, 15 years and above, and all ages. It is sourced from the PLFS by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation and offers insights into regional and age-group-specific unemployment rates. For 2023-24, Chandigarh's entire area has been considered urban for this survey, with data available only for the age groups 15-59 years, 15 years and above, and all ages. Before 2019-20, Ladakh was part of Jammu and Kashmir, and since 2020-21, Daman and Diu has been merged with Dadra and Nagar Haveli to form the union territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu.

This dataset provides the Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR) according to usual status (ps+ss) for individuals aged 15 years and above, segmented by the highest level of education completed, across different states and union territories. Sourced from the PLFS, this data assists in understanding the relationship between educational attainment and labor force engagement. For 2023-24, Chandigarh's entire area has been considered urban for this survey. Before 2019-20, Ladakh was part of Jammu and Kashmir, and since 2020-21, Daman and Diu have been merged with Dadra and Nagar Haveli to form the union territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu.

This dataset details the Unemployment Rate (UR) according to the current weekly status for each state and union territory for all ages and 15 years and above. Provided by the PLFS, this data supports a more frequent assessment of unemployment trends across regions. For 2023-24, Chandigarh's entire area has been considered urban for this survey. Before 2019-20, Ladakh was part of Jammu and Kashmir, and since 2020-21, Daman and Diu have been merged with Dadra and Nagar Haveli to form the union territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu.

This dataset presents the percentage distribution of individuals currently employed, categorized by broad status in employment, according to the Current Weekly Status (CWS) for each state and union territory. Data is sourced from the PLFS, offering an updated view of employment status across regions. For 2023-24, Chandigarh's entire area has been considered urban for this survey. Before 2019-20, Ladakh was part of Jammu and Kashmir, and since 2020-21, Daman and Diu have been merged with Dadra and Nagar Haveli to form the union territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu.