With the State Economic Survey 2019-20 predicting that the industrial sector may grow at 3.3% compared to 5.5% in the previous fiscal, data on working factories and factory employment shows a fall in the number of units giving jobs. The number of employed individuals, however, has increased.
Meanwhile, the number of people registered in skill development, employment and entrepreneurship guidance centres in the State has gone up sharply.
According to the Economic Survey, 26,277 factories employing fewer than 50 workers were running in 2019 compared to 26,479 in 2018. The number of employed individuals in these units, however, has increased from 5.28 lakh in 2018 to 6.07 lakh in 2019.
The number of factories employing 50 or more individuals has come down to 9,303 in 2019 from 9,476 in the previous year. But again, the number of individuals being employed by them went up from 21.57 lakh in 2018 to 22.8 lakh in 2019.
The report shows a sharp rise in the number of people on live register at the skill development, employment and entrepreneurship guidance centres where vacancies are notified and placements are carried out. In 2019, the number stood at 49.9 lakh as against 44.03 lakh in 2018.
In what could be termed as an impact of demonetisation, this parameter has been witnessing a sharp rise since 2017. The number stood at 33.56 lakh by the end of 2016, rose to 38.19 lakh in 2017 and subsequently to 44.03 lakh the next year.
The increase of 16.33 lakh from 2016 to 2019 is the steepest since 1991.
In Maharashtra, the unemployment rate according to current weekly status for urban areas was 8.3% from January to March 2019, compared to the all-India rate of 9.3%.
In 2017-18, the figure in the State was 9.1%.
