New Delhi: National Statistics Office (NSO), under the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI), has proposed to develop dedicated city-level statistical reports for 47 'million-plus' cities to bridge critical data gaps and support informed decision-making at all levels of governance.
These reports will be based on existing data from the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) and the Annual Survey of Unincorporated Sector Enterprises (ASUSE), both of which already allow statistically robust estimation at the city level.
India is experiencing rapid urbanisation, 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, according to an official statement.
Two annual thematic reports are proposed.
The first will present the employment profile of million-plus cities, providing key labour market indicators such as labour force participation rate, worker population ratio, and unemployment rate.
The second will present a city-level profile of unincorporated sector enterprises, capturing the scale, structure, employment, and economic performance of the urban informal sector.
By bringing cities into sharper analytical focus, the initiative seeks to bridge critical data gaps and support informed decision-making at all levels of governance.
The initiative aims to enhance the availability of granular urban statistics, support city-level policy formulation, contribute to city-level GDP estimation, and improve understanding of urban labour markets and enterprise dynamics. The reports will be disseminated annually in the public domain using user-friendly formats.
A consultation paper on the proposed framework for the generation of city-level estimates based on the existing PLFS and ASUSE data is now uploaded on the MoSPI website for wider consultation of stakeholders.
The views of stakeholders are invited to review and suggest improvements to the proposed framework, indicators, methodology, and dissemination strategy; to refine it based on the feedback.
The suggestions and comments may be sent by May 15, 2026.
(PTI)
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