25% youths in 250 districts not in education or jobs: Survey

NEW DELHI: In nearly 250 districts, more than 25% youth (15-29 age group) are neither engaged in any productive work, nor are they pursuing education or any sort of training for work, highlighting a gap in human capital utilisation.The situation is of particular concern in northern India, especially in states such as Bihar, UP, Haryana, Punjab and West Bengal, where nearly two-thirds of districts have around a quarter of the young population categorised as NEET (not in employment, education or training), showed the first-ever district-level periodic labour force survey (PLFS) for 2025, released by statistics ministry Friday.In Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Assam and Telangana in nearly half the districts, 25% young population is categorised as NEET (not in employment, education or training).