A stark reality confronts India as it grapples with the daunting challenge of providing gainful employment to its burgeoning youth population. The latest findings from ‘The India Employment Report 2024’, jointly conducted by the Institute for Human Development and the International Labour Organisation, underscore a troubling narrative of escalating unemployment rates, particularly among educated youth, and a glaring disparity in job opportunities and quality of education.
The report paints a sobering picture: despite India’s economic growth, nearly 83% of the country’s unemployed workforce comprises young individuals, with approximately 7-8 million youth entering the labor force annually. Alarmingly, the proportion of educated unemployed youth has surged to 65.7% in 2022 from 35.2% in 2000, indicative of a mismatch between job market demands and the skills acquired through education.
Furthermore, the unemployment rate among graduates stands at a staggering 29.1%, far surpassing the 3.4% rate among illiterate youth. This discrepancy underscores the inadequacies in both job creation and the quality of education, leaving a significant segment of educated youth ill-prepared to meet employment criteria.
The report also highlights concerning trends such as stagnating or declining wages, a significant gender imbalance in labor force participation rates, and the prevalence of informal employment, which collectively underscore the absence of a coherent policy framework to address these challenges.
With India’s demographic dividend at risk of squandering, urgent and targeted policy interventions are imperative to harness the potential of its sizable youth population for socio-economic advancement. The decline in the youth population share, forecasted to drop to 23% by 2036, further underscores the pressing need for immediate action.
As the country gears up for general elections, policymakers are urged to prioritize job creation and enhance the quality of education and training to align with the demands of a rapidly evolving economy. The onus lies on political leaders to not only address these issues in their electoral campaigns but also to translate promises into concrete policy measures post-elections, ensuring a brighter future for India’s youth and the nation as a whole.