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35.9% to 37.8%

Female employment in villages

Key takeaways from the August 2026 PLFS Bulletin

Economy No. 12 16 September 2026 · 1 min read

1. Female employment rose from 35.9% to 37.8% in villages. In cities, it fell from 23.8% to 23.2%. India's women-at-work story is a village story.

2. Rural unemployment fell to 4.1%, as sowing picked up. Urban unemployment barely moved at 6.8%.

3. VB-G RAM G (Viksit Bharat Guarantee for Rozgar & Aajeevika Mission (Gramin)), think of it as a government-backed job guarantee for rural households. It replaced MGNREGA on 1 July and increased the promise from 100 to 125 days of work, with a minimum wage of ₹300 a day.

The catch however is that PLFS counts anyone who worked even one hour as employed. So it captures that rural workers found work, but not whether they earned more.

India’s gain in working women is all in the villages

Out of every 100 women aged 15 and over, how many had a job in the survey week. Village women: 1.9 more than a year ago. City women: 0.6 fewer.

India's gain in working women is all in the villages: 37.8 of every 100 village women had a job in August 2026, 1.9 more than a year ago; 23.2 of every 100 city women, 0.6 fewer. Monthly, August 2025 to August 2026.

Women with a job, per 100 women aged 15+

June low of 34.7, then 37.8 by August

MoSPI, PLFS Monthly Bulletin, August 2026 · Aug 2025 to Aug 2026

Village joblessness sets the national rate; cities have not moved

Out of every 100 people aged 15 and over who wanted work, how many could not find it. Villages swung from 3.9 to 5.1 and back to 4.1; cities stayed between 6.4 and 7.0.

Village joblessness sets the national rate: of every 100 villagers who wanted work, those who could not find it swung from 3.9 to 5.1 in May and back to 4.1 in August 2026, while cities stayed between 6.4 and 7.0.

Jobless, per 100 people who wanted work, aged 15+

5.1 in idle May, 4.1 once sowing starts

MoSPI, PLFS Monthly Bulletin, August 2026 · Aug 2025 to Aug 2026

The rural job scheme’s first month under the new law gave half the work of a year ago

Days of paid work given under MGNREGA in July 2025 and under VB-G RAM G, the law that replaced it on 1 July 2026. 7 states paused work for the farm season in July.

The rural job scheme's first month under VB-G RAM G gave 7.67 crore days of work in July 2026 against 15.33 crore under MGNREGA in July 2025, down 49.9%.

CRORE DAYS OF WORK

Down 49.9%. The minister told the Lok Sabha 9.69 crore for the first month

The jobs survey counts anyone who worked at least an hour in the week as working, so a move from a scheme site to a paddy field does not show up as joblessness.

VB-G RAM G dashboard, 9 Aug 2026, via The Hindu · July 2025 and July 2026

Sources