New Delhi, Nov. 17 -- Self-employment has emerged as the strongest engine of India's job growth over the past six years, according to HDFC Bank's Employment Trends in India report.

The study showed that self-employment (farm + non-farm) surged from 239 million in FY18 to 358 million in FY24, marking what the report describes as a "healthy CAGR of 7.0 per cent"

This surge makes self-employment the fastest-growing category across India's labour market, outpacing the growth of salaried work and casual labour.

Salaried or regular wage jobs increased only marginally, from 105 million in FY18 to 119 million in FY24, growing at a more subdued "CAGR: 4.1 per cent", while casual labour stagnated, inching up from 114 million to 122 million at a ...