The number of establishments in the unincorporated sector increased by 7.97% and employment grew by 6.18% in 2025 over 2023-24, reflecting broad-based expansion across sectors and steady growth of the sector, government data released on Tuesday showed. The number of such establishments increased to 79.2 million in 2025 (Jan-Dec) from 73.4 million in the Annual Survey of Unincorporated Sector Enterprises (ASUSE) 2023-24 (Oct 2023-Sept 2024).
The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) now conducts the survey on a calendar-year basis, instead of the earlier October-September cycle.
The Gross Value Added (GVA) at current prices registered 10.87% growth in 2025 over ASUSE 2023-24, driven by 16.77% growth in the trade sector followed by 8.52% growth in manufacturing and 7.36% growth in other services sectors.
Among the broad sectors, however, “Other services” had the highest share in GVA (42%) followed by trade (37%) and manufacturing (21%). The unincorporated sector’s GVA at current prices stood at Rs 19.9 lakh crore in 2025, up from Rs 18 lakh crore in 2023-24.
The number of establishments in the “Other services” sector recorded robust growth of 10.29% to 33.6 million in 2025, followed by a 6.48% increase in manufacturing and 6.18% in the trade sector. The number of establishments in the manufacturing and trade sectors stood at 21.4 million and 24.2 million respectively.
128.1 million workers employed during 2025
The unincorporated sector employed about 128.1 million workers during 2025, adding more than 7.4 million jobs since 2023-24, reflecting robust labour market expansion, MoSPI said. Among the broad activities, the other services sector showed the highest growth of 7.40%, generating about 3.5 million new jobs, followed by 6.9% growth in the trade sector, indicating stronger labour absorption in these two sectors.
In absolute terms, the manufacturing, trade and services sectors employed 34.9 million, 42.5 million and 50.5 million workers in 2025 respectively.
“The other services segment emerged as a key driver of expansion, recording growth of 10.29% in establishments, 7.40% in employment, and 7.36% in GVA. At the same time, manufacturing and trade demonstrated even stronger gains in value addition, with GVA increasing by 8.52% and 16.77%, respectively,” the MoSPI said.
Increase in establishment’s access to the internet
There has been a sharp increase in the proportion of establishments using the internet. The share of such establishments increased from 26.7% in 2023-24 to 39.4% in ASUSE 2025, indicating rapid digital adoption within the sector. The data, however, showed a modest increase in the share of female-owned proprietary establishments, rising from 26.2% to 27% over the same period, suggesting gradual but steady progress in women’s participation in enterprise ownership.
The survey also showed a rise in wage in the unincorporated non-agricultural sector with average annual emolument per hired worker increased by 3.88%, rising from Rs 1.41 lakh in 2023-24 to Rs 1.46 lakh in 2025.
“The Gross Value of Output per establishment has slightly declined in ASUSE 2025 as compared to ASUSE 2023-24. This appears to be primarily driven by a reduction in input costs, as reflected in the sharper fall in input per establishment, which more than offsets the decline in output,” the ministry said.
The unincorporated non-agricultural sector contributes significantly to employment generation and Gross Domestic Product (GDP). The sector sustains livelihoods for millions of people and supports the production and distribution of goods and services across the country.