Despite a 25% decline in IT sector hiring in January 2022 compared to one year earlier, India still recorded a 2% growth in hiring activity, employment website Naukri recorded in its monthly JobSpeak Report.

The dip in hiring activity in the IT industry was compensated by a rapid hiring spree in non-IT sectors such as insurance, oil, hospitality, and banking, Naukri reported, noting that these industries were off to a ‘flying start’ in 2023, recording double digit growth.

The insurance industry saw the most significant growth at 93% over the year. The oil industry recorded growth at 55%, hospitality at 53%, banking at 37%, real estate at 31%, and auto at 29%.

Naukri said non-metro cities continue to drive hiring activity in 2023, with insurance, healthcare, and banking as key sector leading job growth in these areas.

Among the non-metro areas, Ahmedabad recorded the largest hiring activity at 40%, followed by Baroda with 37% growth.

Metropolitan cities like Mumbai and Delhi recorded modest hiring growth at 14% and 10%, year-on-year, respectively

Other metropolitan areas like Bangalore, Hyderabad, Pune, and Chennai, which area heavily dependent on IT for job creation, have shown a decline of 20%, 12%, 11%, and 6%, respectively, according to Naukri.