HYDERABAD: Telangana has the third-highest level of unemployment among graduates in India, claims a fresh report. According to the ‘Unemployment in India - A statistical profile’ prepared by the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) and Center for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE), the unemployment rate in the State between May and August 2017 was 18.59 per cent. At 26.28 per cent, Jammu and Kashmir topped the charts followed by Assam which recorded 23.55 per cent unemployment rate.
What more? It’s mostly youngsters who do not have jobs in the State -- the 20-29 age group that is often referred to as the “demographic dividend” capable of boosting the country’s growth and productivity. Among youngsters in the 20-24 age group, the rate of unemployment is highest at a whopping 39.07 per cent -- more than double the State average. Among the 25-29 age group youngsters it’s 16.11 per cent.
In comparison, states like Karnataka, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh have a much lower unemployment rate among graduates -- 4.19 per cent, 5.6 per cent and 3.25 per cent respectively. In rest of the states, it’s between 6 and 13 pc.
“There is a serious mismatch between the quality of graduates produced in our colleges and universities and industry expectations,” says Dr KV Ramaswamy of Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research in Mumbai. “Industry and the academia should work together and map their hiring plans, required skills and a new curriculum,” adds Ramaswamy. “The idea should be to make students employable. Just focusing on the ease of doing business will not help.”
The numbers cannot be taken in absolute terms as the base is much wider in Telangana, point out experts. According to the Sample Registration Survey-2014 data, Telangana stands second in the country in number of graduates -- at 17 per cent. With a wider base of graduates, it’s likely that the State figures prominently in the unemployment list. The unemployment rate among youngsters in the 20-24 age group is 8.87 per cent in Telangana, 5.6 pc in Maharashtra.