In July almost 50 lakh Indians lost their jobs due to the global coronavirus pandemic, taking the total tally of those who lost jobs since April to 1.89 crores, private think tank Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE) data showed.
On a net basis, around 1.77 crore jobs were lost in April. Additional 40 lakhs jobs in May and June and more 50 lakhs jobs were lost in July, the report read. So, by July, the losses had swelled to 1.89 crores.
Even as the data shows an overall improvement in the employment rate since April, CMIE mentioned the issue of 'ballooning numbers' of jobs lost in the salaried segment as a source of worry, terming the recovery in the job scenario as the most difficult.
The think tank had earlier estimated 12.15 crore job losses for April, which later narrowed down to 10.3 crores in May and then to 2.9 crores in June. In July, 1.1 crore people lost their jobs.
Of the 12.15 crore estimated job losses, daily wagers and small traders accounted for over 9.1 crores.
Salaried jobs were nearly 1.9 crores short of their average in 2019-20. They were 22 per cent lower than their level in the last fiscal year, it further added. The report raises concerns over India's economic recovery as factors like GDP, industrial activities, inflation continues to remain grim.
As the nation had started unlocking in a phased manner from June, some of the people got back to work. But the recovery was largely seen in informal jobs. "Of the 9.12 crores jobs lost in April, 1.44 crores came back in May, 4.45 crores in June and 2.55 crores in July. Only 68 lakh jobs remain to return," CMIE report read.