India’s NSO district-level estimates, released for the first time from the Annual Survey of Unincorporated Sector Enterprises (ASUSE) 2025, show that a relatively small number of districts account for a large share of activity in the country’s unincorporated non-agricultural sector.
According to the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, the National Statistics Office has published district-level estimates for 757 of the 770 districts available in the sampling frame during the ASUSE 2025 survey. The findings were released through a PIB Delhi statement on September 10, 2026.
Top 50 Districts Account for Nearly One-Third of Activity
The data show a significant geographical concentration in India’s unincorporated sector.
The top 10 districts, ranked by the estimated number of unincorporated establishments, account for about one-tenth of the sector‘s total establishments, workers and Gross Value Added (GVA).
The top 50 districts account for nearly one-third of total establishments, workforce and GVA. The top 10 districts are spread across Gujarat, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal, while the top 50 are located across 12 states.
Roughly one-third of all districts have more than one lakh unincorporated establishments. About 9% have fewer than 10,000 establishments.
Only 16 districts have more than five lakh unincorporated establishments each. These include eight districts in West Bengal, three in Maharashtra, two in Gujarat, and one each in Karnataka, Telangana and Uttar Pradesh.
Productivity and Women’s Participation Vary Across Districts
The NSO district-level estimates also show wide differences in productivity. In about 331 districts, GVA per worker is estimated between ₹1 lakh and ₹1.5 lakh.
In 280 districts, GVA per worker exceeds the all-India average of ₹1,56,539, indicating relatively higher economic productivity in those districts.
The report also highlights major regional differences in female entrepreneurship and employment. The top 10 districts with the highest share of female-led unincorporated establishments are located in Telangana, Manipur and Meghalaya.
Mizoram stands out, with female-owned proprietary establishments accounting for at least 50% of establishments in every district of the state.
Women Form One-Third of Workforce in 237 Districts
Women account for one-third of the total workforce in the unincorporated sector in 237 districts, while female workers make up more than 50% of the workforce in 25 districts.
The top 10 districts with the highest share of female workers are located in Telangana, Manipur, Meghalaya and Mizoram.
The estimates cover unincorporated non-agricultural establishments in manufacturing, trade and other services. The NSO said the figures are based on sample survey data and should be interpreted alongside regional economic and demographic differences, industrial composition, local conditions and sampling variability.
Lakshadweep and Chandigarh were not separately presented because each consists of a single district, while district-level estimates for Delhi could not be generated because districts were combined into single sampling strata for the survey.
Q1. What are the new NSO district-level estimates?
The NSO district-level estimates provide data on the scale, employment structure and economic performance of India’s unincorporated non-agricultural sector using ASUSE 2025 survey data.
Q2. How many districts are covered by the ASUSE 2025 district-level estimates?
The estimates cover 757 of the 770 districts available in the sampling frame during sample selection for ASUSE 2025.
Q3. How much activity is concentrated in India’s top 50 districts?
The top 50 districts account for nearly one-third of the total establishments, workforce and Gross Value Added in the unincorporated sector.
Q4. How many districts have productivity above the all-India average?
GVA per worker exceeds the all-India average of ₹1,56,539 in 280 districts.
Q5. What do the estimates show about women’s participation in the sector?
Women constitute one-third of the total workforce in the unincorporated sector in 237 districts, while 25 districts have female workers accounting for more than 50% of the workforce.
