India's hiring up 31% in Dec, led by consumer electronics, manufacturing

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India's hiring activity rose 31 per cent in December, driven by consumer electronics, manufacturing, and construction and engineering sectors, a report said on Wednesday.

According to foundit insights tracker (fit), the country's hiring activity rose 12 per cent over the past six months, with a 31 per cent year-on-year increase in recruitment in December.

The fit is a comprehensive monthly report analysing online job posting activity conducted by foundit.in.

The report further said the growth in hiring is reflected across sectors, led by consumer electronics, manufacturing, and construction and engineering leading the charge with 60 per cent, 57 per cent, and 57 per cent YoY, respectively.

Meanwhile, AI jobs in India surged 42 per cent over the past two years reaching 2,53,000 positions.

Top skills include Python, AI/ML, data science, deep learning, SQL and software development. Additionally, expertise in specialised AI frameworks such as TensorFlow (15 per cent) and PyTorch (16 per cent) was highly sought after by employers, said the report.

"The growth in hiring activity across sectors underscores the resilience, adaptability, and dynamism of India's job market. What's particularly exciting is the explosive growth in AI at 42 per cent in just two years, showcasing the transformation of an important skill set to a core driver of the economy.

"With a projected 14 per cent further growth in AI hiring in 2025, we are witnessing a paradigm shift where AI is no longer a futuristic concept, but a fundamental element of India's present and future workforce," foundit CEO V Suresh said.

Further, medical roles experienced a 44 per cent annual growth, fuelled by telemedicine, diagnostics, and specialised nursing, with health tech roles like Healthcare Analyst also seeing a 12 per cent increase.

HR and Admin roles saw a 21 per cent rise in the last three months.

In December, annual hiring surged across all 13 monitored cities, with Coimbatore leading with 58 per cent year-on-year growth, while Bengaluru and Chennai followed with increases of 41 per cent and 37 per cent, respectively.

Mumbai topped month-over-month demand with an 11 per cent rise, along with a 23 per cent YoY increase, while Delhi-NCR and Hyderabad also showed strong annual growth at 33 per cent and 36 per cent, respectively, though their monthly gains were modest.

Tier-II and III cities emerged as healthcare hiring hubs, accounting for 30 per cent of new roles, it said.

Bengaluru, Pune, and Delhi/NCR led AI hiring by 26 per cent, 17 per cent, and 14 per cent, respectively, it stated.