Employment in India’s unincorporated sector surges to 128.1 million in 2025
India's small businesses created 7.5 million new jobs in 2025. Total jobs reached 128.1 million, a significant rise. The services sector led job growth, followed by trade and manufacturing. Gross value added also increased, with rural establishmen...
By Anoushka Sawhney, ET Bureau | Updated:
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New Delhi: Jobs in India’s small businesses across manufacturing, trade and services sectors rose to 128.1 million in 2025 from 120.6 million in 2023-24, according to a report released by the ministry of statistics and programme implementation (MoSPI) on Tuesday. The total number of establishments increased 8% to 79.2 million in 2025.
The services sector recorded the highest job growth at 7.4%, followed by trade (6.8%) and manufacturing (3.6%), as per the data from the Annual Survey of Unincorporated Sector Enterprises (ASUSE) factsheet.
MoSPI now conducts the survey on a calendar-year basis, instead of the earlier October-September cycle.
These enterprises generated around 7.5 million new jobs in 2025 from 2023-24 “reflecting robust labour market expansion”, the ministry said.
Unincorporated enterprises are non-agricultural establishments that are not registered under the Companies Act, 1956 or the Companies Act, 2013. The survey covered 670,289 establishments.
The gross value added (GVA) of these businesses, a key economic performance indicator, rose 10.9% to Rs 19.9 lakh crore in 2025 from Rs 18 lakh crore in 2023-24, with rural establishments leading growth at 11.9% compared with 10.3% in urban areas.
Across sectors, trade recorded the highest GVA growth (16.8%), followed by manufacturing (8.5%) and other services (7.4%).
Data shows that the share of female-owned proprietary establishments edged up slightly to 27% in 2025 from 26.2% in 2023-24.
Digital adoption also surged, with internet usage among establishments rising to 39.4% in 2025 from 26.7% in 2023-24. “This substantial growth reflects a strong trend toward digital adoption among establishments, highlighting the increasing reliance on the internet for business operations,” the ministry said.
It includes employer’s contribution to canteen, health clinic, child care centre, etc., covering both formal and informal hired workers.
Labour productivity improved as GVA per worker rose to 4.5% to Rs 1.6 lakh in 2025. Meanwhile, GVA per establishment rose 2.9% to Rs 2.5 lakh.
The services sector recorded the highest job growth at 7.4%, followed by trade (6.8%) and manufacturing (3.6%), as per the data from the Annual Survey of Unincorporated Sector Enterprises (ASUSE) factsheet.
MoSPI now conducts the survey on a calendar-year basis, instead of the earlier October-September cycle.
These enterprises generated around 7.5 million new jobs in 2025 from 2023-24 “reflecting robust labour market expansion”, the ministry said.
Unincorporated enterprises are non-agricultural establishments that are not registered under the Companies Act, 1956 or the Companies Act, 2013. The survey covered 670,289 establishments.
The gross value added (GVA) of these businesses, a key economic performance indicator, rose 10.9% to Rs 19.9 lakh crore in 2025 from Rs 18 lakh crore in 2023-24, with rural establishments leading growth at 11.9% compared with 10.3% in urban areas.
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Across sectors, trade recorded the highest GVA growth (16.8%), followed by manufacturing (8.5%) and other services (7.4%).
Data shows that the share of female-owned proprietary establishments edged up slightly to 27% in 2025 from 26.2% in 2023-24.
Digital adoption also surged, with internet usage among establishments rising to 39.4% in 2025 from 26.7% in 2023-24. “This substantial growth reflects a strong trend toward digital adoption among establishments, highlighting the increasing reliance on the internet for business operations,” the ministry said.
Emoluments, productivity
The average emolument per hired worker grew 3.9% to Rs 1.5 lakh in 2025, up from Rs 1.4 lakh in 2023-24, signalling improvements in wage levels.ADVERTISEMENT
It includes employer’s contribution to canteen, health clinic, child care centre, etc., covering both formal and informal hired workers.
Labour productivity improved as GVA per worker rose to 4.5% to Rs 1.6 lakh in 2025. Meanwhile, GVA per establishment rose 2.9% to Rs 2.5 lakh.
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