Srinath Mallikarjunan, CEO and Chief Scientist of Unmanned Dynamics, has raised alarm over India’s deepening employment and employability disaster, warning that the nation is heading in the direction of a “demographic catastrophe.”
In an in depth LinkedIn publish, Mallikarjunan wrote, “I feel India has an enormous employment and employability disaster that mainstream media is afraid to speak about. Our Indian workplace had a gap for two interns, and there have been 1,200 candidates. Out of those, about 20 had been shortlisted for additional analysis.”
He pointed to structural flaws in India’s schooling system, itemizing 5 key points:
1. Many IIT college students cease finding out after cracking JEE, making them unfit for real-world jobs.
2. Non-public schools and universities fail to supply significant schooling.
3. First-generation graduates usually earn levels with out buying actual data.
4. College students stay unaware they’re being misled as a result of a damaged system with outdated syllabi, ineffective exams, and poorly skilled academics.
5. Consequently, hundreds of thousands of graduates are solely fitted to name heart or clerical jobs — roles that AI will quickly change.
“So India is just not taking a look at a demographic dividend however a catastrophe,” he warned.
Mallikarjunan suggested college students to take cost of their studying by finding out from reputed worldwide books, utilizing NPTEL programs, and dealing on impartial tasks to develop hands-on abilities.
His publish struck a chord with many professionals who echoed his considerations concerning the job market and lack of sensible abilities amongst graduates. One person referred to as for the introduction of vocational coaching in colleges, emphasizing that Indian establishments “churn out certificates however not abilities.” One other identified that for a single job posting, hundreds of candidates compete, highlighting the shortage of high quality employment.
Mallikarjunan, nevertheless, dismissed the notion that startups might be a fast repair. “Startups providing quick-fix options for a damaged schooling system is like taking paracetamol for most cancers,” he wrote in response to a remark.
One other person shared their private wrestle regardless of holding a PhD and world expertise, saying, “Until I study AI/ML or some JavaScript, it is onerous to get a decent-paying job in India. Our market is pushed by international investments, and AI will quickly automate many of those software program jobs. With out alternatives in different sectors, we’re heading for a disaster.”
Mallikarjunan took a jab at Indian buyers, arguing that they lack imaginative and prescient. “Indian enterprise buyers undergo from a poverty of creativeness. They solely run ponzi schemes the place loss is instantly proportional to turnover. They haven’t any understanding or abdomen for deep tech,” he wrote.