Sharon Ann Philip- The Great Indian Quality Crunch

It’s the mother of all paradoxes plaguing India’s corporate sector today . Our nation has 40 million unemployed people but still there’s a huge talent crunch which is making our knowledge pool look ‘less knowledgeable ‘ than it should be . The problem is immense skill shortage.

Let me first make you familiar with the facts . Our universities churn out 3.6 million graduates every year of whom only 0.9 million are employable . According to the India Science Report, science graduates form 63% of the unemployed graduates .73 million factory workers are required by 2015 , which is 50% more than current figures . Of the 4.5 lakh graduates produced by our 1, 400 engineering colleges ; only 40,000 encompass world class talent and not to forget , there will be a shortage of 500,000 knowledge workers by 2010 .

Having said that , graduate unemployment is on the rise because our university education does not meet employment objectives like language fluency and essential job skills to tackle a competitive environment . The elite of premier institutions like the IITs and IIMs are not enough .Thousands from lesser known institutes need to rise to the forefront and steer growth . The bottlenecks for the same are outdated curriculums in higher education, equally outdated infrastructure and a glaring need for well – qualified faculties .

Some of the solutions to bridge the gap could be increase of job oriented programmes . Companies or factories could seriously consider tie – ups with institutes or vocational educators to offer the required diploma / training . Financial incentives for colleges introducing vocational courses has been advocated by experts too . Universities can offer teachers increased remuneration or sponsor their plans for higher education. Quality should be made directly proportional to the work force at hand . We are a young nation so we can never afford to forget polishing these rough diamonds so that our nation can emerge as a powerhouse , well equipped for the future .

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The Author is I yr BA Programme Student and a Member of the Webteam of DevelopmentChannel.org