The economy added 2.2 million formal jobs between September 2017 and February 2018, the payroll data released by the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) and the National Pension System (NPS) suggests. This is the first time that such data has been released by a government body.
According to The Economic Times, the EPFO data overall showed 3.1 million new additions across age groups over the six-month time frame. Of this, those in the 18-25 age group – considered a proxy for new jobs – amount to 1.85 million. It could be more because according to EPFO, “the data for most recent months are provisional as updating of employees records is a continuous process and are likely to be updated in subsequent month/s”.
In the case of NPS, the new accounts opened in the central and government sector stood at 350,000 during this period, corresponding to new jobs and taking the total to 2.2 million. This is welcome news indeed for the current government long criticised for jobless growth, especially after making it a key electoral promise back in 2014.
Source: Business Today