New Delhi, Nov. 10 -- India's unemployment rate declined to 5.1 per cent during July-September 2026 from 5.4 per cent in the previous quarter, mainly due to a fall in unemployment in rural areas, according to government data released on Tuesday.

The Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS), released by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI), showed that rural unemployment fell to 4.3 per cent from 4.8 per cent in April-June 2026. However, unemployment in urban areas increased slightly to 6.8 per cent from 6.7 per cent.

The ministry stated, "Overall UR for persons of age 15 years and above improved to 5.1% during the current quarter, compared with 5.4% in the previous quarter."

The data also showed that more people w...