Unemployment: Do Not Just Play With Data

Amidst much talked about and widely publicised Govt. Initiatives of ‘Make in India’, ‘Digital India’ and ‘Skill India’ the focus has very naturally been projected on growth and employment opportunities generated through these schemes. The treasury and opposition benches continue to make claims and counter claims in the hackneyed manner, creating the annoying confusion in the minds of a common man.

Playing with statistics or numerical data is like trying your hands at clay which can suitably be moulded to create God or devil. Our politicians who have developed the expertise of shaping the things in the manner most suitable to them, very strategically use or misuse such figures to have their respective ends meet.  In order to arrive at real and trustworthy results, the data or statistics must be objectively analysed and interpreted in the light of various factors clustering around a particular phenomenon. The unemployment data which has often been presented and projected by various Govt. and non Govt. agencies very conveniently and strategically project the picture best suited to the motives of agency presenting them which in turn thrive heavily on the designs and directions of their bosses.

Unemployment statistics cannot be collected by a mere primary survey of sample from the whole universe. Each sector of the economy i.e. primary, secondary and tertiary has its own constitution, compulsions and structural formation which projects altogether different picture with regard to various economic problems confronting them. In India, which is a multi layered economy, multifaceted society and multi hued culture, drawing conclusions about the state of unemployment and that also on the basis of primary surveys appears to be sans any logic.

 Optimum use of available resources has always been preached to be practised for any genuine growth and development. Human resource which is considered to be the most important factor of production and is luckily in abundance in our country very naturally asks to be trained, nurtured, groomed and used effectively. All the policies and programs initiated by the Govt. should centre around the basic theme and objective of taking care of our human resource. Only then the other sectors can flourish to contribute effectively to the Nation’s inclusive growth.

Agriculture sector where a major part of India’s population as human resource appears to have been absorbed is characterised by disguised unemployment which is not visible as the persons seeming to be employed or engaged in this sector are in fact not rationally required there. Such persons therefore are not contributing anything to the national production in the real sense. Their marginal production (an addition made to the total volume of production) is nil or even negative. Hence such class of people are very conveniently kept out from the figures of unemployment as they seem to be absorbed and employed in agriculture operations and the moulded data present a very encouraging and rosy scenario with regard to the employment scenario in economy.

The other kind of unemployment which is of a serious concern for the nation and policy makers is in fact involuntary unemployment where persons are ready, equipped and qualified to do a job but job is not available. Voluntary unemployment is not considered as a problem and people in such manner are kept out of the figures of unemployment. Such people are those who are either not suitably capable to work or are not willing to work.  In India this type of unemployment assumes dangerous proportions, as the education system of our country is churning out and producing cosmetically educated and decorated youth who are tagged with degrees but do not possess the required knowledge and expertise. The industry very rightly and wisely turns its back towards such stuff. The clash of the dreams of such youth with the value and sheen of their degrees and their own real worth and calibre breeds frustration and does not allow them to join or accept any job of lesser profile and potential. Such segment of unemployed youth thus, is caught in the web created of course by them but the faulty education system has to be equally blamed for such grim scenario.

If we go by this real meaning of unemployment, the data projected by various agencies and referred to by the persons in power, employment figures appear to be right and quite impressive as the persons possessing suitable knowledge and calibre are getting appropriately absorbed in the industry which vies for more and more talent and offers lucrative, handsome pay packages for the deserving class. The deserving people who are quite a few in numbers therefore are getting appropriate job opportunities and in principle this leads to the projection of very rosy but ambiguous state of affairs as far as the rate of unemployment is concerned. In my opinion it is not just the slow growth of economy which is to be blamed for such messy state of employment affairs but the faulty and inefficient education sector of our country, the faulty fixation of priorities, and the political compulsions leading to irrational economic decisions are more prominently responsible for the alarming unemployment scenario. Lack of skill oriented courses, carrying on with stereotyped and old pattern of curriculum without giving regard to the changing needs and aspirations of the changed socio economic texture of our country is at the root of such economic ailments on the employment front. In my opinion the think tank of the coveted education sector should mull over the system in which higher education develops visionary thinking, valuable knowledge, genuine skill and calibre which can get our country out of the troubled waters with regard to unemployment and other economic ailments plaguing our country.

 DR. SANJEEV TRIKHA