The government has unveiled five major employment-related schemes with an ambitious outlay of ₹2 lakh crore over five years. These schemes aim to create jobs, facilitate skill development, and provide opportunities for 4.1 crore youth. The Economic Survey emphasizes the need for private sector job creation, leveraging the benefits of lower taxes and higher post-pandemic profits. The Prime Minister''s package must be viewed in conjunction with other initiatives aimed at human well-being.

Challenges in Creating Mass Employment with Dignity

A sustainable road map for mass employment must address the challenge of low wages, especially when there is an abundance of unskilled labor. The 2019-20 Periodic Labour Force Survey highlighted that earning ₹25,000 per month places a wage earner in the top 10%. However, short-duration skill programs have struggled with long-term placements due to insufficient wages for a dignified life, particularly in urban areas.

Importance of Education and Skills Continuum

States with high per capita consumption like Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Himachal Pradesh, Goa, and Sikkim also have better human development indicators. In contrast, states like Odisha, despite pushing for short-term skilling, suffer from low per capita consumption due to the lack of robust secondary and higher vocational education opportunities.

Role of the State in Wage Determination and Public Goods

The state has a crucial role in setting minimum wages and ensuring the availability of high-quality public goods. Evidence suggests that public employment in India is significantly lower per capita compared to developed countries. Therefore, state intervention is necessary for creating sustainable mass employment with dignity.

Key Policy Initiatives for Sustainable Employment

1. Decentralized Community Action for Skilling Needs

• Start from the grassroots level by involving communities in identifying skilling needs.
• Engage local government bodies like gram sabhas or basti samitis to take ownership of state programs.
• Professionals at the cluster level should help create individualized plans for youth, ensuring effective skill provision and employment outcomes.

2. Converge Education, Health, and Employment Initiatives

• Integrate education, health, skills, nutrition, livelihoods, and employment initiatives at the local government level.
• Focus on women''s collectives to ensure accountability and quality outcomes.
• Decentralized community action and untied funds can transform public goods delivery and improve human development indicators.

3. Vocational Courses with Undergraduate Programs

• Introduce vocational courses alongside traditional undergraduate programs in all colleges.
• Provide resources for colleges to experiment with new courses that improve employability, such as tourism, counseling, and more.

4. Standardize Nursing and Healthcare Courses

• Align nursing and allied health professional courses with international benchmarks.
• Standardization of curriculum and duration is crucial to meet the global demand for healthcare workers.

5. Create Community Cadres of Care-Givers

• Develop community cadres of trained crèche care-givers to enable women to work without concerns for childcare.
• Expand services beyond the current anganwadi model, providing universal care through community management.

6. Invest in ITIs and Polytechnics

• Enhance the quality and infrastructure of Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs), polytechnics, and Rural Self Employment Training Institutes (RSETIs).
• These institutions should serve as hubs for feeder schools and develop an equivalence framework for vocational and academic inputs.

7. Introduce Enterprise Skills in High Schools

• Incorporate enterprise and start-up skills into the high school curriculum, focusing on technology and business processes.
• Professional visits to schools can provide students with essential finishing skills, improving their employment prospects.

8. Co-Sharing Model for Apprenticeships

• Establish a co-sharing model for apprenticeships with industry, particularly in the manufacturing and services sectors.
• Skilling costs should be shared with employers to ensure successful apprenticeship outcomes and job placements.

9. Streamline Working Capital Loans for Enterprises

• Facilitate access to working capital loans for women-led and first-generation enterprises to help them scale up.
• Use technology and innovative approaches to improve credit histories and lending confidence for scaling enterprises.

10. MGNREGA Focus on High-Deprivation Blocks

• Direct 70% of MGNREGA funds to water-scarce and high-deprivation blocks, focusing on livelihood security through income-generating initiatives.
• Enhance the productivity of MGNREGA wage earners by providing better skills and wage rates.

Conclusion: Toward a Higher Order Economy

The goal is to create a higher order economy characterized by increased productivity and improved quality of life for workers. A multi-faceted approach involving community action, state intervention, education, and industry collaboration is essential for achieving sustainable mass employment with dignity.