India's Million-Plus Cities: High Pay, Same Unemployment

India's largest cities, those with populations exceeding one million, are emerging as lucrative labor markets. A recent report indicates that workers in these 46 major urban centers receive higher wages and experience better job quality compared to those in other parts of urban India. These cities also show a lower proportion of young individuals not engaged in employment, education, or training.

A majority of men and nearly two-thirds of women in these large cities hold regular salaried positions. Additionally, self-employed women in these areas report higher earnings than their counterparts in smaller urban settings. However, these advantages do not uniformly improve all labor market indicators.

The unemployment rate and labor force participation rate in cities with over a million people are nearly identical to the rest of urban India. Furthermore, the gender pay gap exhibits considerable variation. In some cities like Kalyan-Dombivli, men earn almost twice as much as women, whereas in Prayagraj, women's earnings surpass men's.