Annual Survey of Unincorporated Sector Enterprises (ASUSE) Results for 2025

1. At a Glance

• ASUSE is the annual successor to NSSO's earlier Unincorporated Non-Agricultural Enterprises survey, conducted by the National Statistical Office (NSO) under MoSPI to measure India's informal/unorganised non-agricultural sector covering manufacturing, trade and other services (excluding construction) [S1][S2].
• ASUSE 2025 (Jan–Dec 2025) shows the informal economy expanded to 7.92 crore establishments with GVA growing 10.87% y-o-y, signalling post-pandemic formalisation and recovery of the unorganised sector [S1][S2].
• Critical for UPSC because it feeds GDP/GVA estimation, informal employment data, and policy design for MSMEs, gig workers, Mudra, PM Vishwakarma, e-Shram [S1].

2. Why in the News

• MoSPI released ASUSE 2025 results on 24 March 2026 (PIB press release), covering the survey reference period January 2025 – December 2025; the full report and unit-level data are to be released in April 2026 [S1][S2].

3. Background & Evolution

• The unorganised sector was earlier surveyed by NSSO via decadal/quinquennial rounds (e.g., NSS 73rd Round, 2015–16 on unincorporated non-agricultural enterprises) [S1].
• After the 2019 merger of NSSO and CSO into the NSO, MoSPI launched ASUSE as an annual instrument to bridge data gaps highlighted during COVID-19.
• First ASUSE covered April 2021–March 2022; second covered April 2022–March 2023; the third covered October 2023–September 2024 (ASUSE 2023-24); ASUSE 2025 shifts the reference to a calendar-year cycle (Jan–Dec 2025) [S1][S2].

4. Core Static Facts

• Implementing body: National Statistical Office (NSO), Ministry of Statistics & Programme Implementation (MoSPI) [S1].
• Coverage: Unincorporated non-agricultural establishments in Manufacturing, Trade, and Other Services — excludes construction and incorporated/corporate entities [S2].
• Enterprise types: Own Account Enterprises (OAEs) — no hired worker — and Establishments with at least one hired worker [S2].
• Reference period (ASUSE 2025): 1 January 2025 – 31 December 2025 [S1].
• Total establishments (2025): 7.92 crore, up from 7.34 crore in ASUSE 2023-24 → +7.97% [S1].
• Employment growth: +6.18%, with 74.52 lakh additional jobs [S1].
• GVA growth (current prices): +10.87% [S1].
• Sectoral GVA growth: Trade +16.77%, Manufacturing +8.52%, Other Services +7.36% [S1][S2].
• Sectoral GVA share: Other Services 42%, Trade 37%, Manufacturing 21% [S2].
• Establishment growth by sector: Other Services +10.29%, Manufacturing +6.48%, Trade +6.18% [S2].
• Emoluments per hired worker: +3.88% vs ASUSE 2023-24 [S1].
• Data portal: eSankhyiki (esankhyiki.mospi.gov.in) hosts the dataset [S3].

5. Multi-Dimensional Analysis

Economic - Unincorporated sector contributes a major share of non-agricultural informal employment; 7.92 crore units make it the largest enterprise base in India [S1]. - Trade-led GVA growth (16.77%) reflects post-pandemic consumption recovery and digital commerce penetration [S2]. - Rising emoluments (+3.88%) signal modest real-wage improvement in the informal economy [S1].

Social - Sector absorbs low-skill, self-employed, women and migrant workers; 74.52 lakh additional jobs ease pressure on agriculture and formal sector [S1]. - Predominance of OAEs indicates household-based livelihoods and self-employment dominance [S2].

Administrative / Governance - ASUSE plugs the statistical blind spot for the informal sector — vital because MCA-21/ASI capture only the corporate/organised manufacturing part of GDP. - Feeds back-series GVA revisions and the upcoming base-year revision of National Accounts (2022-23 series) [S1].

Policy linkage - Inputs guide design of PM Vishwakarma, PM SVANidhi, Mudra, e-Shram registration, ONDC and MSME Udyam classification [S1].

6. Recent Developments (last 12-18 months)

• 24 March 2026: PIB release of ASUSE 2025 headline results [S1].
• April 2026 (scheduled): Release of full ASUSE 2025 report and unit-level micro-data [S2].
• ASUSE 2023-24 results released in early 2025 showed 7.34 crore establishments — baseline against which 2025 growth is measured [S1].
• ASUSE 2026 preparatory note released by MoSPI (PRID 2201691) covering the next survey cycle [S3].

7. Prelims Hooks

• ASUSE is conducted by NSO under MoSPI, not by NITI Aayog or RBI [S1].
• ASUSE covers manufacturing, trade and other services — construction is excluded [S2].
• ASUSE 2025 reference period: January 2025 – December 2025 (calendar year) [S1].
• Number of establishments in ASUSE 2025: 7.92 crore [S1].
• Growth in establishments over ASUSE 2023-24: 7.97% [S1].
• Employment growth: 6.18%, adding 74.52 lakh jobs [S1].
• GVA growth (current prices): 10.87% [S1].
• Highest sectoral GVA growth: Trade at 16.77% [S1].
• Highest share in unincorporated-sector GVA: Other Services (42%) [S2].
• Enterprises classified as OAEs (no hired worker) and Establishments (with hired workers) [S2].
• Emolument per hired worker grew 3.88% [S1].
• ASUSE succeeded the NSS 73rd Round (2015-16) decadal survey on unincorporated non-agricultural enterprises [S1].
• Data hosted on eSankhyiki portal of MoSPI [S3].

8. Mains Relevance

• GS Paper III — Indian Economy: growth, development, employment; mobilisation of resources; effects of liberalisation on the unorganised sector.
• GS Paper II — Government policies and interventions for vulnerable sections (informal workers).
• Possible question stems: 1. "Annual surveys of the unincorporated sector are critical for accurate GVA estimation in India." Discuss in the context of recent ASUSE findings. 2. Examine the structural transformation of India's informal non-agricultural sector as reflected in ASUSE 2025; what policy implications follow for MSME and employment policy? 3. The unorganised sector remains the largest employer outside agriculture in India. Discuss the role of statistical instruments like ASUSE in evidence-based policymaking.

9. Related Topics to Study Next

• Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) — companion MoSPI dataset on employment.
• Annual Survey of Industries (ASI) — covers the formal manufacturing counterpart.
• MSME / Udyam Registration & PM Vishwakarma Yojana — policy users of ASUSE data.
• e-Shram portal — registry of unorganised workers.
• National Statistical Commission (NSC) & NSO–CSO merger (2019) — institutional context.
• Base year revision of National Accounts (to 2022-23) — uses ASUSE inputs.
• Informal sector definition (NCEUS, Arjun Sengupta Committee 2007) — conceptual foundation.
• MCA-21 database controversy — debate on private corporate-sector GVA estimation.

10. Common Errors / Trap Areas

• ASUSE is run by NSO/MoSPI, not by the Ministry of MSME or NITI Aayog.
• ASUSE excludes construction; do not confuse with overall informal-sector coverage.
• ASUSE 2025 uses a calendar-year reference (Jan–Dec 2025); ASUSE 2023-24 used Oct–Sept. Reference periods differ across rounds.
• ASUSE is the successor of NSS 73rd Round (2015-16) — not of the Economic Census (which covers all establishments including agriculture-allied).
• Growth figures (10.87% GVA) are at current prices, not constant prices — do not equate with real growth.

11. Sources

• [S1] Annual Survey of Unincorporated Sector Enterprises (ASUSE) Results for 2025 — https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2244457 — (tier: 1)
• [S2] Press Note on ASUSE 2025 (English), MoSPI — https://www.mospi.gov.in/uploads/latestReleases/latest_release_1774347321466_c16ddf22-bfff-4097-88a7-b3134e464d51_Press_Note_ASUSE_2025_English.pdf — (tier: 1)
• [S3] ASUSE / Know Your Survey – MoSPI publications & ASUSE 2026 PIB note — https://www.mospi.gov.in/sites/default/files/publication_reports/ASUSE_ENGLISH_10092025.pdf ; https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2201691 — (tier: 1)