India’s second wave has left over 75 lakh jobless: CMIE

New Delhi: Over 75 lakh jobs have been impacted by the second wave of COVID-19 and the resultant localised lockdowns taking the unemployment rate to a four-month high of 8 percent, the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE) said on Monday.

The situation on the employment front is expected to continue to remain challenging going forward as well, CMIE’s managing director and chief executive Mahesh Vyas said. “In the month of April, compared to March, we have lost 75 lakh jobs. That is what has caused the jump in the unemployment rate,” he told PTI.

The national unemployment rate touched 7.97 percent as per the centre’s proprietary data, with urban areas witnessing higher stress at 9.78 percent and rural joblessness at 7.13 percent. The national unemployment rate had stood at 6.50 percent in March, and the number on both rural and urban front was lower.

What is likely to happen is that unemployment can remain at high levels, he said, adding that the labour force participation rate can also fall. “In worst situation, both can happen,” Vyas added. He, however, said that the situation right now is not as dire as the one witnessed in the first lockdown, when the unemployment rate had touched up to 24 percent levels.

The country is reporting around 4 lakh new infections a day and over 3,000 deaths.