UPSC Mains
GS Paper II
Education & Skilling
NITI Aayog: Degrees like BA, B.Sc, B.Com Have “Weak Job Linkages,” Need Reforms
NITI Aayog’s “Reimagining Skilling for Viksit Bharat” report flags that over 90% of Indian graduates work in roles unrelated to their qualifications.
Roles Aligned to Qualification
Just 8.25% of graduates
Graduate Unemployment
13% overall, 20.4% women
NEET Youth (15–29 yrs)
~8.7 crore
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Key Findings of the Report
- Education-employment disconnect: India’s higher/technical education system suffers a fundamental gap between what is taught and what the labour market demands, with outdated curricula.
- Poor alignment: Only about 8.25% of graduates are employed in roles aligned to their qualifications (Economic Survey 2024-25).
- High educated unemployment: Unemployment stands at 13% among all graduates and 20.4% among graduate women, far above the national rate of 3.2%.
- Over-reliance on generic degrees: Of 3.4 crore undergraduates, 1.1 crore are in BA alone; combined BA, B.Sc and B.Com enrolment exceeds 2 crore.
- Large NEET population: About 8.7 crore youth (15–29 years) fall under NEET — not in Education, Employment or Training.
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Understanding the Core Problems
- Outdated curriculum: Course content misaligned with evolving industry needs.
- Low industry readiness: Youth are certified but not job-ready as employees or entrepreneurs.
- Social stigma: ITIs, diplomas and technical training wrongly seen as “second-tier” pathways.
- Information gap: ~47% of women and 43% of youth among NEETs skip skilling due to lack of awareness.
Wage penalty: A generic graduate without skilling earns ~₹22,000/month vs ₹29,000/month for a skilled one — a gap compounding to nearly ₹9.71 lakh over 10 years.
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Why This Matters for India
Demographic Dividend at Risk
A young population without employable skills can become a demographic burden.
Jobless Growth
Economic growth is not translating into quality employment for graduates.
Gender Gap
High unemployment among graduate women deepens workforce gender inequality.
Barrier to Viksit Bharat
A skills deficit undermines the goal of a developed India by 2047.
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Way Forward
Job-Linked Programmes
Specialised, industry-aligned courses in high-growth sectors like EVs and green industries.
Strengthen Apprenticeships
Expand industry-backed, hands-on training to bridge the skills gap.
Demand-Driven Skilling
Shift from supply-driven to outcome-linked, industry-backed models.
Curriculum Reform
Regularly update syllabi in partnership with industry.
Remove Social Stigma
Raise the prestige of vocational education and ITIs.
Leverage NEP 2020
Embed skilling and multidisciplinary learning in higher education.
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Source: Indian Express
