India plans city-level data on jobs, enterprises to aid policy

In a first, NSO proposes to develop reports on labour force participation, status of enterprises

- Subhash Narayan

In a first for India, the government plans to develop and release dedicated statistical reports for 47 cities with a population of over one million, covering two key indicators: labour force participation and the status of enterprises.

Led by the National Statistics Office (NSO) under the ministry of statistics and programme implementation (MoSPI), the initiative aims to make detailed urban data more readily available and provide a stronger evidence base for urban policy and planning.

The proposal comes at a time when the country is experiencing rapid urbanization, with cities increasingly driving economic growth, employment generation and structural transformation. Despite this, official statistics at the city level remain limited, constraining evidence-based urban policy and planning, a statement from MoSPI said.