Unemployment In J&K Stays Nearly Double National Average: Govt

The unemployment rate in Jammu and Kashmir has remained consistently higher than the national average over the past several years, the government said on Monday. 

In response to a question by legislator Mubarak Gul in the J&K Legislative Assembly, Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Choudhary said, citing official data from the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS), said the overall unemployment rate stands at 6.7 per cent in the Union Territory, which is significantly higher than the national average of 3.5 per cent.

Quoting the PLFS of the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, the deputy CM who is minister incharge Labour and Employment department said the unemployment rate among persons aged 15 years and above in Jammu and Kashmir has remained higher than the national average over the last six years.

In 2024–25, the unemployment rate in the UT stood at 6.7 per cent against the all-India average of 3.5 per cent. The rate was 6.1 per cent in 2023–24 compared to India’s 3.2 per cent, while in 2022–23 it was 4.4 per cent against the national figure of 3.2 per cent, he said, quoting the data from the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation. 

As per the data, the J&K Employment Department conducted an extensive baseline survey across the Union Territory in January last year in collaboration with district administrations under Mission YUVA.

The government said addressing unemployment, particularly among youth, was its priority, and that its strategy was not confined to short-term job provisioning but focused on creating sustainable livelihoods through entrepreneurship, skilling and institutional reforms “so that youth become job-creators rather than job seekers”.

“In this context, Mission YUVA has emerged as a transformational initiative, witnessing unprecedented enthusiasm and participation from youth across the Union Territory,” it said.  Over 1.71 lakh youth have registered on the platform since its launch, leading to around 70,000 formal enterprise applications, a scale that clearly reflects growing confidence in the programme, it added.

In response to a question from Pulwama MLA Waheed ur Rehman Para, the General Administration Department said in a written response that its recruitment boards, the Jammu and Kashmir Public Service Commission (JKPSC) and the Jammu and Kashmir Service Selection Board (JKSSB), have together collected Rs 48.88 crore in application fees from candidates across the UT between 2023 and 2025. Of this, the JKPSC has collected Rs 17.90 crore and the JKSSB has earned Rs 30.98 crore, the GAD said. Para said this was “despite the government’s explicit promise that all application forms would be made free”, alleging that charging exorbitant fees from jobless youth not only contradicts the stated policy of the government but also amounts to “blatant exploitation of unemployed aspirants, who are already under severe economic distress. In response to another question, Education Minister Sakeena Itoo told the Legislative Assembly that the de-freezing of teacher posts is under “active consideration” of the government to overcome teacher shortage in J&K.