Prepare for the big leap

kiran karnik
president, Nasscom

India’s impressive figures of economic growth hide a serious and growing problem: unemployment. Over the last few years, employment in the organised sector is, at best, stagnant. In fact, even as GDP grew at 5.3% a year between 1998 and 2003, employment in the organised sector actually dropped by 4%. The unorganised sector showed growth of just over 1% in employment.

With some 20 million persons entering the work force each year, this is already an explosive problem. The solution to this problem is to vastly increase entrepreneurship and self-employment, converting individuals from job seekers to job creators. It is, therefore, essential to create the conditions that will encourage and enable individuals to take up self-employment. While loans, fiscal incentives and appropriate policies are necessary, the key factor is the development of skills that facilitate self-employment. In this, one expects the education system to play a major role.Of all children who enroll in schools, over 50% drop out by class VII and 70% by class X.

Most of them, as also many who complete schooling, then join the unofficial workforce, doing odd jobs on farms, homes or in the millions of small business that abound in both the city and village. In a short period, they pick up rudimentary work skills, learning on the job, and life skills that enable them to cope with an adverse environment. The few — or even many — years of traditional school education contribute little to prepare them for such work or for the environment.

Meanwhile, many traditional occupations face extinction due to industrial production and change in life-styles. However, new opportunities of self-employment are emerging. The products of modern technology — TV sets, computers, tractors, motor vehicles, hand phones, DVD/CD players and a host of others — are entering many more homes. These provide immense new opportunities in sale, installation, servicing and repair, but will require training. This is why vocational education is so important.

So far, attempts to introduce vocational education have not met with great success. Vocationalisation of secondary education, introduced in 1988 at the +2 stage, did well initially but later lost steam. At the university level, career oriented courses were introduced in 1994 but have never been popular.

Numerous other schemes have been started at various times by different ministries, but none seems to have really been successful. The major problems are insufficient practical training, irrelevant courses and inadequate training of faculty.

Overall, it is the lack of involvement of practitioners and a lack of market responsiveness that seem to be the problems. What is required is fewer schemes, far greater involvement of industry, responsiveness to market needs and a well-structured programme of faculty training.

In order to promote self-employment, the course must include training in entrepreneurship and low-cost loans must be available to all who pass such courses. Courses must begin at the school-level, and be available to school drop-outs too.

A massive programme is urgently needed, implemented as a public-private partnership and focusing on the disadvantaged, especially in poorer areas (like the so-called Naxal-affected districts).

Such an effort can increase productivity, create jobs, and provide substantial benefits to individuals and society.