It is unfortunate that our country has had no plans to take advantage of the demographic dividend available for a limited period of about 50 years, possibly ending in 2050s (Editorial page, “ Youth can be a clear advantage for India,” Feb. 24). Indian economy has been on the downturn and unemployment has been on the rise. Let alone the country taking advantage of demographic dividend, even the normal employment opportunities are disappearing due to faulty economic policies. Even if the economy turns for better, Indian youth have been found to be woefully short of employable skills. Already, a precious 15 years have been lost. At least, the remaining period of 3-4 decades should be utilised with foresight, if the country is not to lose the advantage of the demographic dividend. While making all-out efforts through suitable policy measures to put the economy back on track and on an accelerated growth path, it is imperative that a plan of action to improve the educational system, including improving the employability of the youth, is prepared and implemented urgently. Opening a large number of vocational training institutions and imparting employable skills to students exiting engineering, polytechnic and other degree colleges are some of the measures to be taken on priority. Apart from creating the ecosystem that provides congenial climate for private sector investment, which has not been encouraging for the last few years, public investments/finance should be hugely stepped up, especially in the infrastructure and SME sectors, to shore up and put the economy back on rails. The investments should be so planned that they have maximum positive impact on the unorganised sector, which absorbs a large number of the youth leaving schools and junior colleges. The government should wake up before the demographic dividend turns into a demographic disaster.
Kosaraju Chandramouli,
Hyderabad
