There is unemployment on gigantic scale in India. Our government doesn't even measure employment data seriously and periodically. It does measure, however, once in 5 years and that too through sampling methods.
This shows how little we, as a country don't care about employment or think everybody is not entitled to be employed in a dignified manner or an environment which promotes unstructured employment or seasonal employment.
This is a topic which requires debate and immediate resolution. Sustained unemployment is set to create social imbalance and derail Indian growth story.
Unstructured Employment: Let me think loudly. A middle class family in top 10 cities of India requires at least 2-5 support personnel...Bai, driver, child care taker etc. Now, if government implements 'right to education' in spirit and letter, I am sure cost of living in India will multiply 4 times. It may restructure middle class way of life. It may make luxury truly unaffordable or redefine luxury itself.
Seasonal unemployment: Our politicians and we Indians need it badly. India celebrates two festivals apart from regular festival. One is election (vidhansabha or loksabha) and marriage. Winning election is not a child game and it requires mammoth coordination which requires human resources at each and every level. No business provides employment to local youths as much elections and marriages do.
Hidden unemployment: I had read it in social studies at class 10th but saw its manifestation when I joined work. I can say with confidence that it prevails largely in corporate sector. First, our IT companies exploited talented youths from IITs. IIT engineers are supposed to do better things in life but few men presented jobs wrapped so nicely that almost every IITian fell for it. An IIT engineer has more-than-adequate talent and aptitude to maintain a US client system or write code or manage coolies.
The interesting question is why it happened. It happened due to TINA (There Is No Alternate) factor. Our government and institutes failed to provide an conducive or stimulating environment of innovation, research or creation and the country has been loosing excellent engineers to few men who claim they have created 'value'. I don't deny it but the opportunity cost is huge. opponents to my argument may argue that opportunity cost doesn't exist because there was no alternative however why we haven't woken-up till date is another question for some other day.
If China has become manufacturing hub of this world, we are in the process of being back-office support center of this world. We need to push innovation, creation or research. The government, private institutes and corporate India should provide adequate incentive to educated youth for innovation and research to harness our in-house talent adequately.
In the nutshell, we need to wake-up to aspiration of people in this country at all levels. The prevailing environment and worsening law-and-order situation is a sound warning to all governing bodies, state and central governments. The kids who should be in laboratories were pelting stones in streets in J&K. We have naxal problem in many states. We have 'right to education' act but we lack political will and financial muscle to implement it. Education has slowly become luxury in this country either by design or by inaction.
The problem of unemployment may convert demographic dividend to a unmanageable law-and-order problem. The country needs to act fast at all levels.
