PLFS changes from January 2027; NSO seeks comments within 15 days

What has happened

The National Statistical Office (NSO) under the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation has said that changes will be made to the sample design and schedule of the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) from January 2027. Comments and suggestions on the proposed changes have been invited from policymakers, researchers, academic and research institutions, and the general public.

PLFS is the survey that produces the country’s employment and unemployment figures. NSO has been conducting it since 2017.

What changed earlier

According to the notice, the survey’s format has evolved to meet the demand for more timely and detailed labour market data. From January 2025 the sample design was revised so that monthly, quarterly and annual estimates could be provided and indicators could be assessed at the sub-state level. Questions on education and skill development were also added.

From January 2026, information is being collected on an experimental basis about a subgroup of gig workers, namely digital platform workers.

What changes from January 2027

For the two-year period 2027-2028, called the new Panel 6, fresh samples will be drawn from an updated sample frame. This frame reflects the updated urban frame survey, urbanisation and de-urbanisation, and the creation, splitting or merging of districts and other administrative units, along with follow-up updates to the rural frame of Census 2011. The updated frame is expected to give better representation of the current population, especially the urban population.

A new second-stage stratum (SSS) is being introduced for digital platform workers, while the existing SSS structure and components are retained. There will be four SSS in rural areas and five in urban areas, each covering 14 households in a selected first-stage unit (FSU).

What new questions are being added

An additional yes/no question has been added in Block 5 of Schedule 0.0 PL to identify households where a member worked on a digital platform during the specified reference period. It will be asked in both urban and rural households.

Schedule 10.4 has new questions on producing goods for own use, unpaid domestic and caregiving activities, volunteer work and unpaid trainee work. These will be asked in both rural and urban areas, only during the first visit, to persons aged 15 years and above, so that annual reporting on these activities becomes possible.

What happens in the first three months

For the first three months starting January 2027, the sample will include FSUs from both the Panel 5 frame and the updated Panel 6 frame. Monthly bulletins for these months will present combined monthly estimates based on both frames. Relative standard error (RSE) estimates will not be presented for these three months.

Where to send comments

Comments and suggestions are invited within 15 days of the publication of the press note. A concept note with detailed information is available at https://www.mospi.gov.in/. The revised sample design and estimation procedure, and the revised schedules 0.0 PL and 10.4, are part of that note.