WORLD YOUTH SKILLS DAY: Upskill youth for a self-reliant economy

Life in the post-coronavirus era will not be the same. The effects of the pandemic are expected to have a lasting impact on every sphere of activity, even as various nations are trying to revive economies and protect livelihoods. As the pandemic-induced lockdowns battered economies, disrupted global supply chains and affected livelihoods across different sectors, the Prime Minister, Narendra Modi gave a clarion call for making India self-reliant. He announced Atma Nirbhar Bharat Abhiyan to propel the country on the path of self-sustenance.

At the same time, the call for Atma Nirbhar Bharat is not meant to promote protectionism or isolationism by erecting trade barriers. Rather it seeks to make the Indian economy robust in the long run by scaling up manufacturing, accelerating infrastructure development, attracting investments and promoting a consumption-led growth. The Rs 20 lakh cr economic revival package announced by the PM is an important step in the direction of building a self-reliant India. The five pillars on which it is sought to be built are: economy, infrastructure, technology-driven system, vibrant demography and demand.

With agriculture continuing play a critical role in the growth of the Indian economy, the stimulus package quite naturally focused on revival of the rural economy. The goal of achieving economic self-reliance will remain a mirage if agriculture and allied sectors remain stagnant.

For too long, the Indian farmer suffered due to a host of unfavourable conditions from vagaries of the nature to exploitation by middlemen. The long-overdue reform of allowing farmers to sell their produce anywhere is a step in the right direction and will result in better price realisation. At the same time, the focus must be more on promoting local entrepreneurship. In this context, the PM had recently stated that industry groups would be formed near villages, towns and cities to make different products from local resources.

No doubt, youth are the future of any country. But India can take lead over many other nations because about 65 per cent of the country’s population is below 35 years and 50 per cent is below 25 years. With huge, educated young population, India is uniquely poised to realise the demographic potential and reap the advantage of this vast powerhouse of human resource talent. The fact that Indians are heading several MNCs shows that there is no dearth of knowledge and talent in the country. However, the need of the hour is to upgrade the skills or upskill the youth to meet the employment needs of technology-driven 21st century and accelerate the pace of self-reliance.

While the repercussions of the pandemic have been quite severe on every sphere of human activity, one of the most profound impacts has been on workplaces. Businesses, industries and organisations in the government as well as the private sector have been forced to dramatically change their ways of operation.

The uncertainty created by the pandemic is being seen by many as an opportunity to upgrade knowledge and acquire new skills that will cater to the post-corona virus job scenario. The United Nations has quite appropriately chosen the theme ‘Skills for a Resilient Youth’ for World Youth Skills Day today, which is being observed by holding virtual events amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. The skills required for tomorrow’s jobs will be completely different from the skill-sets youth possess today. They not only need to be resilient in terms of employment skills but should also be able to emotionally tide over any kind of situation or any new disruption that might arise in the future. According to UN, the COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown measures have led to the worldwide closure of technical and vocational education and training (TVET) institutions, threatening the continuity of skill development. It is estimated that nearly 70 per cent of the world’s learners are affected by school closures across education levels currently.

TVET institutions play an important role in equipping youth with requisite skills for employment, including those needed for self-employment. They also help in upgrading or re-skilling low-skilled youth. Much before the current pandemic, the fourth industrial revolution triggered a paradigm change with the digital technology driving the job market. Remote working with increasing adoption of digital technology might continue to be the modus operandi for the foreseeable future. A host of skill sets – inter-personal/intra personal, listening and communication, cross-cultural sensitivity, being a good team player, adaptability to changing work environments, emotional intelligence and social etiquette along with good academic record are important for those seeking employment in the emerging job scenario. AI, machine learning, data science, cloud computing and Internet of Things, among others, will be increasingly relied upon by companies and businesses. With people increasingly resorting to online buying, companies will seek to adopt new online marketing strategies to increase the sale of their products.

India Skills Report-2020 says currently millennials contribute nearly one half (47%) of the country’s working population. It is likely to remain the largest chunk of the Indian workforce for the next 10 years. Other important issues that need to be addressed by all stakeholders are ensuring equitable employment through higher participation of women workforce and the extremely of low level of formally trained workforce. In the backdrop of the call for Atma Nirbhar Bharat, there have been some reassuring developments with accent on ‘local to glocal.’ The production of about several lakh PPE kits, collaboration of automobile industries to produce ventilators, the manufacture of more than 70 ‘Made in India’ products by DRDO, development of low-cost ventilator ‘Prana-Vayu’ by IIT Roorkee, the products developed by start-ups in Karnataka to tackle coronavirus, including an AI based device for detection of COVID-19 through an X-Ray are just a few examples of the capability of Indian scientists, IT professionals and technocrats in rising to the occasion and meet any challenge. We should convert this unprecedented crisis into an opportunity to build a self-reliant economy. Based on the locally available resources, talent, and skills of the human capital, we must aim to gradually reduce imports in every sector from crude oil to heavy machinery.

While remaining vocal about local, there has to be a paradigm shift in all areas from R&D to manufacturing for Indian products to be globally competitive. India cannot afford to be a struggler in the march for progress and higher attainments. We must endeavour to stay ahead in the innovation-led knowledge economy. The PSUs and the private sector must not only play a complementary role in building a self-reliant India, but collaborate wherever feasible. Undoubtedly, the private sector must massively step up investments in R&D. The PSUs too need to modernize in terms of technology. In areas like hi-tech medical devices and equipment, India has to drastically increase manufacturing to cut down imports and save precious foreign exchange.

This is the time for 130 crore Indians to showcase the country’s grit, determination and collective resolve to overcome the setbacks caused by the pandemic. We need to forge ahead by harnessing India’s human resources and technological capabilities. To remain globally competitive with a well-assured future, we need to focus on ‘Skills, Scale and Speed.’ India has the potential to emerge as the global hub for providing skilled manpower to other nations. We can prove to the world that 21st century belongs to India through self-belief, dedication and discipline.