Near Jobless Growth in India: An Anomaly or an Outcome of Economic Reforms? | HPSC Preparation: All subjects - HPSC (Haryana) PDF Download

Economy

India’s population has been increasing every single year. It is the second most populated country in the world, with China being the first. With the country's population growth, it could surpass China in the near future, which is a cause of concern. However, what comes with a huge population is a huge workforce. The youth or the unemployed people in the country make for a large segment of the total population, and there aren’t enough jobs for the people. Despite introducing a variety of schemes to boost employment in the country by the government, a large number of people are still unemployed, and the rate of unemployment is increasing every year.
The different governments have implemented various schemes to increase employment opportunities for the people over the years, but these programs have had limited success. India still faces the major issue of widespread unemployment, which will eventually hurt the economy. While it is easy to blame the government for the failure of such schemes or to say that the corruption at the various levels is responsible, many other factors have contributed to India's miserable employment situation.

Reasons for Jobless Growth in India

Despite multiple attempts at increasing employment opportunities, millions of people have no work or are engaged in informal sectors and, thus, have no regular source of income. Here are some of the reasons as to why this is the case:

• Capital Intensive Production: Owing to the many technological developments, much of the production is done using machines. While this makes work easier for the people, it ultimately reduces the need for a workforce. More and more people are left with no work because the machines do a better job. Manufacturers simply need to make investments in such machinery and occasional expenditure on repairs but do not need to hire too many people, which saves them money. Only a few people are hired to operate the machinery, and thus, a lot of people who were initially employed lose their jobs. What was created to aid humans has somewhat replaced them.
• Lack of Proper Education: Ensuring that everybody gets a proper education has been a priority for every government, but there has been no real change in what is taught. Schools and even colleges focus highly on theoretical knowledge, which can’t be applied easily. The education system lacks focus on developing a skill set that can be useful when working. Not just that, the system is designed in such a way that people are promoted to the next level without having actually learned anything. Statistics show that there are many kids who aren’t able to read texts properly and are still promoted because they met the minimum requirements for passing.
• Employment in the Unorganised Sector: There are many jobs available in the unorganized sector like that of a construction site worker, a labourer, etc., and many people, especially those who do not have a strong educational background, tend to gravitate towards this sector. They are paid every day for their work, and that seems to suffice for the workers, but it does more harm than good. Such workers are managed by a contractor who pays the minimum wage, and thus, the workers earn just about enough to make it through the day. This sector does not contribute much to the economy, and since this is contractual work, the labourers and workers could easily lose their jobs.
• Imports: Despite the introduction of programs such as Make in India, the country continues to import a large number of goods that aren’t produced domestically. Importing means fewer job opportunities. Many people could have been employed in producing certain goods, but their import takes away this possibility. Also, increasing domestic production means lowering workers' wages since the manufacturers and companies would want to cut down on the costs of production. This way, people are employed, and the production continues, but there is no real improvement in people's lives since they will continue earning meager salaries.
• Perpetual Population Growth: As mentioned above, India is just a few years away from becoming the most populated country globally, which is a serious cause for concern. The number of people will keep increasing, but the resources will deplete. The same is the case with jobs. There aren’t enough jobs in the market to begin with, and a population explosion will only put more people under the unemployment umbrella.

Ways to Combat this Jobless Growth

Despite the lack of jobs in the country, the economy can still grow, thanks to the developments in technology and international trade. However, having more unemployed people will eventually bring the GDP down since the spending will decrease because of fewer people earning. To keep the economy stable and growing and improve the lives of the people in the country, it is the need of the hour to introduce measures to solve unemployment.

• Measures to Curtail the Population: One of the most important areas to work on is implementing rules and policies to discourage population growth. Hence, people need to be educated about the adverse effects of a population explosion.
• Improving the Education System: Along with ensuring that every individual has access to education, there should be comprehensive efforts to improve the available quality and kind of education. There should be opportunities to work on hard skills so they can be useful in practical situations.
• Encouraging Local Entrepreneurs: The government must implement schemes that will encourage local communities and their businesses. This way, they can better their work, which will improve the condition of their community and contribute to the economy. Investing in or promoting their work will enable them to employ more people if the business expands.
• Change in Labour Laws: Using modern technology and machines to supplement production is a great way to be cost-efficient and to get the work done faster. However, it shouldn’t be at the cost of the workers. Moving from capital intensive production to labour intensive production is a great way to go to a country like India, where there is ample labour.

It is necessary to understand the country's employment trends and introduce adequate measures to improve the situation if there is a major problem of unemployment, as is the case with India. Ignoring the issue or not implementing well thought out plans will only go on to negatively impact the lives of the people and also the economy.