Delhi poverty and unemployment rates drop to 2.1 percent, government report shows

The Directorate of Economics and Statistics, Government of Delhi, has released the Delhi State Indicator Framework (SIF) 2025 report, revealing significant declines in both poverty and unemployment rates across Delhi. The report, which tracks sustainable development goals (SDGs) progress from 2015 to 2024-25, shows that the city's poverty rate dropped to 2.1 percent in 2017-18, while the unemployment rate fell to 2.1 percent in 2023-24.

According to the status report, the proportion of people living in poverty in Delhi decreased overall from 4.4 percent to 3.21 percent in recent years. More specifically, the proportion of men, women, and children living in poverty fell from 4.4 percent in 2015-16 to 2.1 percent in 2017-18, marking progress toward the "No Poverty" SDG, which aims to eliminate poverty in all its forms.

Delhi's employment indicators also recorded positive trends. The unemployment rate, which stood at 9.7 percent in 2017-18, gradually decreased to 8.7 percent in 2019-20, dropped to 5.3 percent in 2021-22, and reached 2.1 percent in 2023-24. Concurrently, the labor force participation rate for individuals aged 15 to 59 years increased from 49.9 percent in 2017-18 to 51.5 percent in 2023-24.

Female labor force participation in the capital rose from 11.2 percent in 2017-18 to 13.7 percent in 2018-19, and further to 14.5 percent in 2023-24. The report also highlighted changes in Delhi's sex ratio at birth, which measures the number of female live births per 1,000 male live births. The ratio increased from 898 in 2015 to 913 in 2017, reached 920 in 2019, rose to 929 in 2022, and was recorded at 920 in 2024.

Additionally, the number of beneficiaries under the "Women in Distress" scheme in Delhi saw steady growth. The number of registered beneficiaries rose from 1,68,977 in 2015-16 to 1,97,863 in 2017-18, reached 2,38,706 in 2019-20, grew to 3,12,272 in 2021-22, and ultimately reached 3,97,465 in 2024-25.

The SIF 2025 report is based on the United Nations' 'Transforming our World: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development'. It covers Delhi's progress across 16 SDGs to facilitate decision-making and support the implementation of various government schemes.