Preference for govt jobs, limited industries push up unemployment in Himachal

Himachal has recorded the highest unemployment rate among the youth in the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) for the April-June quarter. In the 15-29 age group, the unemployment rate has jumped to a worrisome 29.6 per cent. It’s more than double of the average national unemployment rate of 14.6 per cent. In the October-December quarter, the state’s unemployment rate in this age-group was 19 per cent against the national average of 16.1 per cent.

The overall unemployment rate, too, has been rising in the state. As per the information shared by the government in the Vidhan Sabha, the unemployment rate was 4 per cent in 2021-22, 4.4 in 2022-23 and 5.4 in 2023-34. “As many as 5,93,457 lakh people are registered in employment exchanges across the state. But all these people are not necessarily unemployed. Despite landing a job, many do not get their names deleted in the hope of getting a better job, or availing the government schemes meant for the unemployed,” said Harshwardhan Chauhan, Minister for Labour and Employment.

Nevertheless, there’s no denying that unemployment is on the rise in the state, especially among the youth as shown by the latest PLFS.

According to experts, preference for government jobs and limited private sector and industries in the state are the factors pushing up the unemployment rate among the youth. “A large chunk of educated youth keeps waiting for government jobs, without looking at the available options in the private sector. This obsession with government jobs is one of the major reasons for the rising unemployment rate in the 15-29 age group,” said Rakesh Sharma, Associate Professor, Economics.

Besides, experts feel a large number of students are opting for conventional subjects, which have little value in the job market. “There’s a clear gap in what our students are studying and what’s required in the job market. There’s an urgent need to restructure our academic curriculum to meet the requirements of the job market,” said a senior official on the condition of anonymity. “We need to focus more on providing skill-based and vocational courses in schools and colleges,” he added.

Limited industries and a small private sector is another big reason for the rising unemployment rate. “Other than the industries in the Baddi, Barotiwala and Nalagarh area, there’s hardly any opportunity for the youth to seek jobs in the private sector. And there are hardly any starts-up in the state,” said the official.

With government jobs drying up fast and the industrial sector not big enough, experts feel diversification in the agriculture sector can absorb a significant percentage of our unemployed workforce. “If we can diversify into producing cash crops and high-value crops and promote ancillary industries like processing units, it can help in bringing down the unemployment rate,” the official said.