Slight ease in lockdown gives hope to the desperate, improves employment

The count of the unemployed who were actively looking for jobs during the week of April 26 was around 76 mn. In the earlier weeks, it was close to 100 mn

During the week ended April 26, the unemployment rate was 21.1 per cent. This is substanti­ally lower than the 26.2 per ce­nt rate recorded in the preceding week. The latest weekly unemployment rate is also the lowest during the national lockdown.

However, the lower unemployment rate of the latest week is accompanied with a further fall in the labour participation rate. While the unemployment rate has been somewhat volatile as it bounced between 21 and 26 per cent during the lockdown period, the labour participation has declined in every week during the lockdown. The labour participation rate has dropped from 42.6