India's unemployment rate drops to 6.5% in January; employment rate surges to 37.9%: CMIE The unemployment rate declined to 6.5 per cent in January 2021 from 9.1 per cent in December 2020, while the employment rate surged to 37.9 per cent as compared to 36.9 per cent, says CMIE Chitranjan Kumar | February 15, 2021 | Updated 17:31 IST Nearly 12 million additional people were employment during January 2021 The year 2021 started on positive note for India as it recorded a significant fall in the unemployment rate and an equally impressive increase in employment rate in January, according to private think tank CMIE. Employment in India, however, remained lower than it was before the pre-COVID levels, but there were lesser unemployed people willing to work as well, it said.