India’s biggest challenge

Source: The post is based on an article “India’s biggest challenge” published in the Business Standard on 14^th July 2022.

Syllabus: GS1 – Population and Associated Issues; GS 3 Indian Economy; Inclusive Growth

Relevance: Population; Employment; Demographic Dividend

News: In the recent past, the population division of the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, has released its population projections related to China and India..

The population projections

In 2022, India’s population will converge on China’s with both having a total of just over 1.4 billion people.

Further, India is set to become the world’s largest country by population in 2023. Further, India’s population will continue to grow. But China’s population will begin to shrink from now onwards.

According to the same projections, India’s population will be around 1.7 billion and China’s around 1.3 billion by 2050,

What are the challenges in front of India?

India has not been able to prepare the workforce for the job market. It is unlikely to represent any “demographic dividend”. This has been due to laggard educational attainments and lack of focus on school quality. For example, a third of high school students in urban and peri-urban Delhi have no basic mathematics and language skills

There is a lack of jobs in the job market in India. Although, the Periodic Labour Force Survey 2020-21 states the number of unemployed youths has come down compared to previous years. But, The data remains inadequate to give a full picture.

Therefore, India cannot afford to have the largest population in the world with one of the world’s lowest employment ratios.

India will face a lot of problems. The problems will not be restricted to just economics like missing jobs and growth. It will also translate into social problems like riots.

Way Forward

It is all very well, in addition, to talk of skilling this generation after their school education. But unless they are given a solid grounding in the basics, attempts at vocational training may not work.