Jobs push needs skilling: Economic policy think-tank NCAER urges investment in training, says 13% job gain possible by 2030
NEW DELHI: India can boost employment in labour-intensive sectors by over 13% by 2030 through targeted investment in formal skilling, according to a paper by the National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER).
The study argues for a multi-pronged policy push to improve workforce quality and bridge the country's employment gap.
The paper, titled 'The Landscape of Employment in India: Pathways to Jobs', highlights the critical role of skilled labour in accelerating job creation, particularly in manufacturing and services. 'On the supply side, we show that increasing the share of skilled workforce by 12 percentage points through investment in formal skilling could lead to more than a 13 per cent increase in employment in labour intensive sectors by 2030,' the paper said, quoted PTI.
Labour-intensive industries currently account for a significant share of employment—44.1% of manufacturing jobs and 54.2% of services sector employment, the paper noted.
'Our demand-side simulations indicate that we can significantly bridge the employment gap by increasing the size of the manufacturing and services sectors, particularly through a focus on labour-intensive industries therein,' it added.
The paper's author, Farzana Afridi, emphasised the need for a 'multi-pronged approach' to enhance production capacity and stimulate job creation, including higher government expenditure, tax cuts, and domestic demand stimulation.
While analysing government initiatives, the paper cited a mismatch in the Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme, pointing out that although it focuses on high-skilled, high-value sectors, the most jobs have been created in food processing and pharmaceuticals.
'This reflects a mismatch between budgetary allocation under PLI and potential for employment creation,' the paper said.
To maximise gains, the report recommends adopting global best practices, implementing national quality standards, and revamping education systems to improve human capital. It also suggests embedding digital literacy, ICT skills, and soft skills into vocational training to enhance employability.
The study referenced the Future of Jobs Report 2025, which estimates that 63% of India's workforce will need reskilling or upskilling by 2030 to stay competitive.
'Improving training quality, along with increasing the share of formally trained workers, can lead to higher employment gains,' the paper concluded.
Stay informed with the latest
business
news, updates on
bank holidays
and
public holidays
.
AI Masterclass for Students. Upskill Young Ones Today!– Join Now
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Hindu
38 minutes ago
- The Hindu
TTD Chairman highlights reforms to ease darshan for pilgrims
Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) trust board Chairman B.R. Naidu on Friday (August 15) said the management has embarked on several reforms to offer quality darshan to devotees visiting the hill shrine of Tirumala. During his Independence Day address after hoisting the National Flag at TTD administrative building here, he spoke about the steps taken towards the implementation of Artificial Intelligence (AI), as espoused by Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, to provide faster darshan by reducing the waiting time. Referring to pilgrim comfort, he pointed at the launch of a programme to distribute food and milk at the Vaikuntham queue complex once every three hours, the introduction of 'vada' at Tarigonda Vengamamba Annadanam Bhavan from March this year, new SRIVANI ticket issue counters to facilitate same-day darshan, modernisation of Kalyanakatta (tonsuring centre) and establishment of a quality testing lab at Tirumala to test food, drinking water, raw materials and ghee. Mr. Naidu also announced an ambitious plan to ensure construction of Sri Venkateswara temples in all States. 'Eight temples have already been completed, while approvals have been obtained in fifteen States and four Union Territories,' he said. Similarly, he also hinted at the planned development of the TTD's existing sub-temples. Reiterating the TTD's resolve to ensure a comfortable darshan and stay to every pilgrim during their visit to Tirupati, Executive Officer J. Syamala Rao appreciated the officials and staff for their commendable services towards the goal. The TTD management presented a five-gram silver coin bearing the imprint of Sri Venkateswara and a certificate of appreciation to 41 meritorious officers, 278 employees from various departments and seven from SVBC on the occasion. TTD Additional Executive Officer Ch. Venkaiah Chowdary, Joint Executive Officer V. Veerabrahmam, Chief Vigilance and Security Officer Murali Krishna took part.
Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
AI is reshaping career skills and college curricula, but are schools ready when students let AI do their assignments?
Soft Skills: The Human Advantage You Might Also Like: US computer science degrees from top universities are leaving graduates jobless: Why is top coding education no longer enough? Why Schools Need to Start Early You Might Also Like: AI can't steal this one human skill, and it could be your ticket to career success before it catches up iStock Colleges are already rethinking their curricula to encourage adaptability, creativity, and collaboration. But K-12 education still largely prepares students for a knowledge economy that may soon look very different. The Hidden Risk A Reading Crisis Compounds the Challenge The Skill to Rule Them All For decades, high-paying careers have been built on the pillars of knowledge work — coding, data analysis, research, and other technical expertise. But the rapid rise of generative artificial intelligence is eroding that certainty. Employers are already exploring ways to automate entry-level programming, writing, and analytical AI can write code, draft reports, and generate design concepts in seconds, will the next generation of workers still need these skills at the same depth? And more importantly — are today's schools equipping children for what comes next?A report from The Conversation suggests the answer may lie in a set of abilities AI struggles to replicate: soft skills . These include emotional intelligence , adaptability, collaboration, and complex problem-solving — qualities that might prove more recession-proof than technical prowess in the AI AI can mimic patterns from vast datasets, producing text, images, and even software. But it falters when faced with tasks requiring emotional understanding, ethical judgment, or nuanced social interaction.'Soft skills… are integral to solving complex problems and working with people,' the Conversation report notes, adding that traits like conscientiousness and empathy, while often seen as personality-driven, can in fact be Web Services CEO Matt Garman echoed this in an interview with CNBC, revealing the advice he gave his own teenage son: focus on critical thinking above all else. 'That's actually going to be the most important skill going forward,' Garman backs him up. A 2023 Heliyon study found that even in technical fields, over 40% of in-demand abilities were human-centric — from strategic decision-making to flexibility — areas where AI consistently are already rethinking their curricula to encourage adaptability, creativity, and collaboration. But K-12 education still largely prepares students for a knowledge economy that may soon look very Conversation report outlines simple, practical steps for integrating soft skills into everyday lessons — without sidelining math, science, or reading. One approach is reimagining 'exit tickets' — brief reflections at the end of class — to ask students about moments of kindness, resilience, or intellectual courage. These exercises can build emotional awareness, which predicts stronger teamwork and better problem-solving later in strategy is embedding 'messy' problem-solving into the curriculum. Instead of simply calculating the area of a rectangle, students might work in teams to measure the irregular shapes of playground equipment, or test soil moisture around the school and propose landscaping solutions. Such real-world challenges train students to think beyond textbook answers — a realm where AI still report a growing problem: students using AI to complete assignments they should be doing themselves. While the shortcut might save time, it robs them of the slow, effortful practice needed to master foundational danger is a generation of 'fast learners' who never develop the patience, persistence, and analytical grit required for hard problems. As the Conversation piece warns, classrooms may need to protect certain learning spaces from digital automation — perhaps returning to handwritten essays or oral presentations to ensure deep ability to read, summarize, and compare texts adds another complication. AI tools can now 'ingest' entire novels and produce detailed analyses, allowing students to bypass reading skipping the act of reading strips away its cognitive and emotional benefits. Studies show that reading strengthens empathy, critical thinking, and even long-term brain health. Yet trends are worrying: the U.S. National Assessment of Educational Progress found that daily reading for pleasure among fourth graders has dropped from 53% in 1984 to 39% in linguist-led research warns, delegating too much reading and analysis to AI risks 'cognitive offloading' — weakening the very thinking skills that schools should be no one can predict exactly how AI will reshape the job market, one truth stands out: technical skills will continue to evolve, but human skills — empathy, adaptability, complex reasoning — remain the most important thing schools can teach is self-awareness: knowing when to use technology and when to rely on one's own mind. In an AI-driven world, the workers who thrive will be those who can not only think critically, but connect deeply — skills worth cultivating long before college begins.
Economic Times
an hour ago
- Economic Times
Enterprises see AI's main value in better decision-making rather than as an automation tool: Survey
TIL Creatives All large enterprises covered in a survey see the main value of artificial intelligence in improving the decision-making process rather than its use as a pure automation tool, a business-to-business publication firm CIO & Leader said on Friday. Generative AI deployments have grown five times since 2023, transforming creative processes from marketing content to software code, and by the end of 2025, 30% of IT services will be fully automated by AI, the State of Enterprise Technology Survey 2025 said. The survey is based on insight received between May and July 2025 from over 350 chief IT officers or chief technology officers of enterprises having an annual turnover of over Rs 5,000 crore. "100% of enterprises cite better decision-making through insights as their top AI priority, reflecting AI's role as a cognitive enabler rather than just an automation tool," the report to the survey, 98.4% of enterprises prioritise cost reduction and process efficiency and operational agility or business resilience for AI adoption, showing the technology is valued for both immediate returns and long-term adaptability, while 96% see AI's value in customer experience enhancement, as it offers personalisation, service automation, and interaction insights."93% of enterprises will increase AI and analytics investment in 2025, with more than half projecting significant budget hikes," the survey said. The use of AI in IT operations has made it the most mature use for the technology, as 41% of enterprises are using it for functions such as automation, anomaly detection, and ticket triage. AI adoption in finance (31%) and customer service (28%) is being driven by forecasting tools, chatbots, personalisation, and self-service 90% of enterprises see data security and privacy as top barriers to AI adoption, followed closely by data quality 85% of enterprises prefer building AI capabilities internally, with 51 per cent rating it as their "most likely" approach. "The investment intent is crystal clear: Indian enterprises want AI embedded into the fabric of decision-making. The challenge is ensuring that these investments mature into governed, measurable programmes rather than isolated experiments," CIO&Leader, executive editor and research lead Jatinder Singh said. Elevate your knowledge and leadership skills at a cost cheaper than your daily tea. Tariffs, tantrums, and tech: How Trump's trade drama is keeping Indian IT on tenterhooks Good, bad, ugly: How will higher ethanol in petrol play out for you? As big fat Indian wedding slims to budget, Manyavar loses lustre As 50% US tariff looms, 6 key steps that can safeguard Indian economy Stock Radar: JSPL forms Ascending Triangle pattern on weekly charts, could hit fresh 52-week high soon Nifty and business are different species: 5 small-cap stocks from different sectors with upside potential of up to 30% F&O Radar | Deploy Bear Put Spread in Nifty to play index's negative stance amid volatility Wealth creation: Look beyond the obvious in some things; 10 fertilizer sector companies worth watching
