- Why in news
- On 10 September 2026, the National Statistics Office (MoSPI) released its first district-level estimates from a large nationwide survey. They cover the unincorporated non-agricultural sector, based on ASUSE 2025.
- Sectors covered
- The survey covers unincorporated non-agricultural establishments in manufacturing, trade and other services.
- District coverage
- Estimates are given for 757 of 770 districts in the sampling frame. Delhi, Chandigarh and Lakshadweep have no separate district estimates.
- Concentration
- The top 50 districts by number of establishments hold nearly one-third of establishments, workforce and GVA. The top 10 hold about one-tenth.
- Productivity
- All-India GVA per worker is Rs 1,56,539. In 280 districts it is higher than this.
- Sampling design
- It uses multi-stage stratified sampling. First stage units are census villages in rural areas and UFS blocks in urban areas. Data are collected on tablets by CAPI.
Don’t confuse with ASUSE vs PLFS: ASUSE measures enterprises: establishments, GVA and emoluments. PLFS measures employment and unemployment of households.
Don’t confuse with Unincorporated vs informal sector: Unincorporated means proprietary, partnership and similar non-company enterprises. It is not the same as the whole informal economy, which also includes informal workers in formal firms.
Reports and indices: 14 Prelims questions since 2013; they test who publishes a report and what it measures.
Why it matters
- District-level data allows targeted, area-specific policy, such as for MSMEs, skilling and women's enterprise.
- It reveals regional gaps in productivity and women's participation that state-level data hides.
Problems
- Estimates come from a sample survey, so some district figures have high relative standard errors.
- District boundaries have changed since the sampling frame, so figures may not match current districts.
Way forward
- Use district estimates along with reliability measures (RSEs) when designing schemes.
- Update sampling frames regularly to match new districts and extend coverage to all districts.
Put in your answer
Concentration of enterprise activity: The top 50 districts hold nearly one-third of establishments, workforce and GVA. This shows uneven regional development in the informal sector.
- 2023Mains GS3 · Q11Examine unemployment computation methodology in India and suggest improvements.
- 2021Mains GS3 · Q1Explain difference in GDP computation methodology before and after 2015.
- 2014Mains GS3 · Q1Reasons for services outgrowing industry; is industrial base essential?
UPSC’s own questions that come close to this issue, from our Prelims and Mains banks.
No practice question for this one; the card may still help an answer. Why: First district-level estimates on the informal sector; useful data topic, but routine data rarely tested (reports are 14 of 327).
Worth revising until Prelims 2028: most news questions come within two years of the event.