Uttar Pradesh government makes ‘hyperbolic claims’ on employment, says Samajwadi Party

The Samajwadi Party (SP) on Saturday (March 14, 2026) accused the Uttar Pradesh Government of making “hyperbolic claims” on employment, alleging that roughly one-third of the State’s youth remains economically and educationally inactive—a level higher than the national average.

Citing data from the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI), SP spokesperson Ram Pratap Singh said that while Uttar Pradesh’s official unemployment rate stood at 2.4% in 2022-23—lower than the national average of 3.2%—the figure did not capture the full extent of youth disengagement from education and work.

According to the National Sample Survey 78th Round Multiple Indicator Survey 2020-21, 33.5% of youth aged 15-24 in Uttar Pradesh were Not in Education, Employment or Training (NEET), compared to the national average of 29.3%. For the 15-29 age group, the State’s NEET rate stood at 36.7%, higher than the national average of 32.9%. Among young women in the State, the rate was as high as 59.5%.

Mr. Singh said the discrepancy arises because unemployment figures count only those actively seeking work within the labour force, whereas the NEET indicator captures all youth who are neither working, studying, nor undergoing training.

“Even as the formal unemployment rate falls, nearly one-third of U.P.’s youth remain economically and educationally inactive, at levels above the national average. This suggests that while measured unemployment improved, economic growth may not be translating into meaningful employment or skill development opportunities, particularly for young women,” he said.

Another SP spokesperson, Nasser Salim, questioned the State Government’s claims regarding investment and employment generation.

He said the Global Investor Summit 2023 had produced 18,643 MoUs worth ₹33.5 lakh crore, while the government has claimed to have created between 7.5 lakh and 8.5 lakh government jobs over the past eight years.

Mr. Salim also referred to the Uttar Pradesh Skill Development Mission, which reportedly trained around 12 lakh people, of whom more than six lakh were told to be “directly linked to employment”.

“These figures lack independent verification, and the distinction between ‘linked to employment’ and actual job placement remains undefined. Even if accepted, they represent modest gains relative to Uttar Pradesh’s youth population and the scale of the NEET challenge,” he said.