We Will Have 20 crore Unemployed People By 2025 Without Skill Development: FICCI Chairman

Automation and Artificial Intelligence is feared to take away jobs from the market. But experts in skill development believe that redefined skills can meet the challenges thrown up by the constantly evolving technology.

At FICCI's 10th Global Skills Summit Mohan Das Pai, Chairman, FICCI Skill Development Committee said that we need to prepare for skills that will last 40 years. The change in technology in the last 15 years has been greater than the previous 50 years.

Mohan Das Pai added, “We have been creating 60-70 lakh jobs per year. With a growth rate of around 7 percent, it is impossible that jobs are not being created. In this age of disruption, we need to develop skills to meet the challenges. Unless we focus on skill development, there will be around 20 crore people without jobs by 2025.”  

Skills development minister Dharmendra Pradhan, focused on creating an ecosystem where Indians can feel they can skill themselves and play the role of job creation in the country.

Pradhan added, “We missed growth opportunity in the last industrial revolution. We are focusing to create an ecosystem so that India does not miss on the Industrial Revolution 4.0. India has only 10 percent skilled white-collar jobs and its biggest challenge will be to take 1-1.5 crore workforce to a level where they are skilled enough to earn their livelihood.”

Attending the summit, Simon Bartley, president of WorldSkills International said,”India will develop enormously fast if it embraces development of skills for all and not just few. He focused on the fact that skills are more important than education in today’s world. It is important to implement all the skills you have. There are jobs but people need to be upgraded.”  

He further focused on the fact that India is missing in the list of top 10 countries in the world skills competition and challenged India to take it up and improve.

Rajguru Tandon

BW Reporters The author is a correspondent with BW Businessworld with keen interest in HR and employee welfare.