Annual Survey of Unincorporated Sector Enterprises (ASUSE) 2025: Key Findings

The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) has released the results of ASUSE for 2025, offering insights into the informal sector in India, focusing on unincorporated non-agricultural enterprises.

Sector Growth Overview

• The total number of enterprises increased from 7.34 crore in 2023-24 to 7.92 crore in 2025, marking an 8% growth.
• Employment in the sector rose by 74.5 lakh people, reaching approximately 12.8 crore workers, indicating a 6.2% increase.
• MoSPI describes both the enterprise and employment growth as "healthy" and "robust," respectively.

Economic Productivity and Earnings

• Gross Value Added (GVA) per worker:
  • Increased by 4.5% to Rs 1.56 lakh in 2025.
• GVA per establishment:
  • Grew by 2.85% to Rs 2.52 lakh, indicating sluggish growth.
• Earnings per hired worker:
  • Rose by just 3.9%, a significant drop from the previous period's 13% increase.

Comparison with National GDP Growth

• India's GDP grew at approximately 9% in nominal terms, highlighting the informal sector's lag in growth and productivity.

Implications for Policy

• ASUSE data is crucial for GDP estimation and policy formulation, particularly for MSMEs and textile sectors.
• The findings highlight the importance of transitioning more workers into the formal sector.