When Julius Caesar’s Senate fixed January 1 as the ‘first day of the year’, the idea wasn’t only to ‘start afresh’. It was also when those in civil office were to set in motion their responsibilities. In that tradition, coming down from 45 BC, let the existing coalition government headed by Narendra Modi set out to focus and do a lot better with this list: Top 25 Must Get Done In 2025.

1. Control inflation: Retail inflation reached a 14-month high of 6.21% and food inflation reached a 15-month high of 10.87% in October 2024. In 2023, savings by households dipped to a 50-year low.

2. Make the GDP grow: The Reserve Bank of India reduced GDP growth estimates from 7.2% to 6.6% in December 2024. The repo rate was not cut for eleven consecutive terms.

3. Attract foreign investment: 13 thousand crore (1.6 billion USD) worth of foreign direct investment has decreased between 2022-23 and 2023-24.

4. Make the rupee strong: In December 2024, the rupee stayed weak for the third straight session and settled at an all-time low of 85.27 against the US dollar.

5. Generate employment: Youth unemployment rate has been at 10% for the last two years. As per the Economic Survey, half of all individuals are not ready to be employed after graduating from college.

6. Favour the common man: In the last four years, Rs 5.65 lakh crore has been written off for the industrial sector. Agriculture, the largest employer in the country, received the least attention in terms of loan write-offs among all sectors from Scheduled Commercial Banks.

7. Provide food for all: Annually, 17 lakh Indians die from diseases related to insufficient food intake.

8. Ensure equal wages for all: Annual growth rate of real wages over the last decade has been close to zero at the all-India level. Rural real wages for the last five years have declined at 0.4% and agricultural wages have become stagnant at 0.2%. Four out of five people earn less than Rs 515 as of 2021.

9. Ensure dignity of life for farmers: As per the NCRB, 30 farmers commit suicide every day. Since February 2024, 22 farmers have lost their lives and over 160 have been injured while protesting for a legal guarantee for MSP.

10. Enable safety for women: Section 63 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita deals with the offence of rape but provides an exception for marital rape, stating that “sexual intercourse or sexual acts by a man with his own wife, the wife not being under eighteen years of age, is not rape”.

11. Ensure dignity for the marginalised: Between 2018 and 2020, 443 people died cleaning sewers and septic tanks. Manual scavenging was banned in 2013.

12. Protect the press: Between 2014 and 2019, there were 200 serious attacks on journalists, along with arrests and interrogations. At least 194 journalists were targeted by government agencies, non-state political actors, criminals, and armed opposition groups in 2022 alone.

13. Ensure equitable representation: The representation of women in the 18th Lok Sabha is merely 13.6%. This is even less than the 17th Lok Sabha, which had 14.4% women. Only two out of 24 Parliamentary Standing Committees are chaired by women.

14. Allow legislative scrutiny: Since 2019, over 100 bills have been passed in less than two hours. In the 17th Lok Sabha, nine out of 10 bills introduced in Parliament have been marked by zero or incomplete consultations.

15. Select the Deputy Speaker of Lok Sabha: The 17th Lok Sabha did not have a Deputy Speaker for its entire five-year term. The office of the Deputy Speaker continues to remain vacant even in the 18th Lok Sabha.

16. Allow criticism: The number of opposition MPs who have been suspended in the last five years has increased 13-fold. As many as 95% cases by the Enforcement Directorate in the last ten years have been filed against those from the Opposition.

17. Respect institutions: The National Commission for Backward Classes, the National Commission for Scheduled Castes, and the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights do not have a Vice-Chairperson.

18. Support Scheduled Tribes, Scheduled Castes & Other Backward Classes: As of March 2024, one out of 10 Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalayas (KGBV) were not functional. Two out of five Eklavya schools were not functional as of July 2024.

19. Complete timelines: The 2021 Census has still not been conducted. This makes it the first Census to be delayed between 1887 and 2011.

20. Utilise funds better: As much as 80% of the Beti Bachao Beti Padhao’s total fund was spent on media advocacy, not for interventions on health or education.

21. Release dues owed to states: The government owes Rs 1,500 Crore under MGNREGS and Awas Yojana to West Bengal. The non-payment of the funds has directly affected the livelihood of 59 lakh MGNREGS workers.

22. Care about Manipur: The violence in Manipur has continued for more than a year, causing the displacement of 67,000 people, of which 14,000 are school-going students. The Prime Minister is yet to visit the state.

23. Safeguard minorities and their welfare: The NCRB recorded 378 instances of communal violence in 2021 and 272 such instances in 2022. In 2023, India witnessed 668 documented hate speech incidents against one community alone. One hundred and twenty-eight properties were demolished between April and June 2022, following communal violence and protests.

24. Build secure public infrastructure: There were 244 train accidents between 2017 and 2022. As many as 135 people died when a suspension bridge collapsed in Morbi. Fourty-one workers were trapped for 17 days after the Uttarkashi Tunnel caved in.

25. Enable a safer internet: Frauds relating to “digital arrests” in the first nine months of 2024 amounted to losses worth Rs 1616 crore. The Digital Data Protection Rules have not been notified despite the Act being passed over a year ago.

(Research credit: Varnika Mishra)

(Derek O’Brien, MP, leads the Trinamool Congress in the Rajya Sabha)

Disclaimer: These are the personal opinions of the author

One of the major challenges facing the economy is sluggish consumption. Consumption, in turn, depends on the ability of the people to spend. After adjusting for inflation, the crux of the issue lies in having more income in people’s pockets to spend, which is ultimately determined by employment levels in the country. Increasing employment depends on the overall performance of the economy. With the economy slowing from 8.2% growth in FY24 to under 7%, the corporate sector’s ability to create jobs is limited. Employment increases only when companies perceive value in hiring. They are unwilling to keep staff on the bench and drag down their profit-loss account.

Direct Action Is Good

The government has started taking direct action to create employment, a move that deserves appreciation. While the government has focused on filling vacancies within the public administration, it has also taken steps to encourage the private sector to hire more people. A recent example is the decision by the insurance behemoth Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) to hire “Bima Sakhis”. The scheme, aimed primarily at women aged 18-70 years who have completed at least 10th grade, offers a three-year training programme with stipends of Rs 7,000, Rs 6,000, and Rs 5,000 per month, respectively, over the course of these years. The goal is to empower women and equip them with the skills to be gainfully employed, specifically as LIC agents who will help onboard customers for insurance products. This initiative represents a progressive step by the government in collaboration with the LIC. Depending on the success of the scheme, the government may consider similar partnerships with other insurance agencies, including general insurers. In a way, this mirrors the banking correspondent model used for financial inclusion.

Additionally, the FY25 Budget announced two schemes to boost employment by providing incentives to employers. One scheme ensures that the government offers a contribution of a month’s wage for first-time employees. Another provides a benefit to both employers and employees through government contributions to the employees’ provident funds. Like the Bima Sakhi initiative, the budget also introduced an internship scheme targeting 1 crore youth over five years. The government will provide a stipend of Rs 5,000 per month to these interns, who will receive on-the-job training at the country’s top 500 companies, potentially leading to full-time employment. It will certainly help them become more employable.

An Incomplete Approach

These are commendable steps by the government to encourage India Inc. to hire more people and address the job creation issue. Two ideas emerge from these initiatives: First, such programmes could be replicated across various industries, and second, state governments could take the lead in implementing them in their regions. But, is this the only approach for creating jobs?

The challenge lies in the fact that companies are driven by the need to maximise profits for their shareholders. This is achieved by growing the business and cutting costs. Employee costs are a significant part of any company’s expenditure, so there is hesitation to hire more people than necessary to run operations. This has resulted in periodic layoffs, even in profitable companies, leading to temporary unemployment among highly skilled workers. Often, those laid off are made to accept jobs that pay less than their previous positions.

While the government’s initiatives are a positive start, such measures cannot be sustained indefinitely as they require substantial financial commitment to keep people employed in the private sector. Alternatives must be explored to create employment in non-government sectors. One possible solution is to provide incentives for companies to hire more workers. This could take the form of tax incentives for companies that show a growth rate in permanent headcount higher than the average of the last three years. Similarly, the PLI (Production Linked Incentive) scheme could be linked to employment targets, allowing companies to claim subsidies from the government if they hire more people.

A Carrot And Stick Policy

By linking fiscal benefits to employment growth, companies can be incentivised to hire more staff. This is particularly important as many sectors are increasingly deploying AI technologies, which may not be the best fit for a labour-surplus economy like India’s. To counter this, the government could consider imposing higher taxes on AI technologies to discourage their use. Additionally, a “layoff tax” could be considered for companies that engage in firing despite being financially healthy. Admittedly, this would be difficult to administer, as often, laid-off employees are forced to resign.

While the government has taken the right steps to increase private-sector employment, these measures may be costly in light of other fiscal commitments. The approach should be expanded to include other government layers. More importantly, a “carrot and stick” policy should be adopted to ensure that the private sector contributes to the nation-building process, particularly in terms of employment.

(The writer is Chief Economist, Bank of Baroda, and author of Corporate Quirks: The Darker Side of the Sun)

Disclaimer: These are the personal opinions of the author

New Delhi:

A new report reveals that 72 per cent of employers across India intend to hire freshers in the latter half of 2024. This upward trend in hiring intent is based on a comprehensive survey of over 603 companies nationwide, reflecting a 4 per cent increase from the previous half-year and a notable 7 per cent rise compared to the same period in 2023, a report by TeamLease EdTech said. 

“The increase in hiring intent for freshers is an encouraging sign. It reflects growing confidence among employers and presents valuable opportunities for fresh talent entering the workforce,” Shantanu Rooj, Founder and CEO of TeamLease EdTech, said. 

India’s unemployment rate has declined to 3.1 per cent as per the latest National Statistical Office (NSO) data, though challenges persist for graduates and freshers seeking employment.

The report says that industries such as e-commerce, tech startups, engineering, infrastructure, and retail are leading the charge in fresher hiring. Bengaluru tops the list, with 74 per cent of employers indicating plans to bring on new graduates, followed by Mumbai at 60 per cent and Chennai at 54 per cent.

In terms of specific roles, the demand for Full Stack Developers, SEO Executives, Digital Sales Associates, and UI/UX Designers remains high. According to the report, employers are increasingly seeking candidates with specialized skills in cybersecurity, cloud computing, data analytics, and search engine optimization.

“The need of the hour is to constantly learn, not just for freshers but also for managers and employees as workplaces undergo transformation,” Mr Rooj said. 

To address the skills gap, 70 per cent of employers surveyed recommended enhancing academic curricula with experiential learning, while 62 per cent advocated for stronger partnerships between industry and academia. 

As the dust settles on the proposals that the Finance Minister made in the Budget earlier this month, some aspects have become clearer while questions remain on others.

Budget 2024-25 saw several initiatives around employment and skilling being proposed. Do these form a good first step in addressing the jobs challenge the country faces? Or should the government have begun addressing the problem at the level of primary school and worked upwards?

Guest: Amit Basole, Professor of Economics at Azim Premji University

Host: K. Bharat Kumar

Edited by Jude Francis Weston

Listen to more In Focus podcasts:

The BJP floundered in the 2024 Lok Sabha election. The floundering continued on the floor of both Houses where Members of Parliament from the INDIA parties delivered multiple speeches that were well-structured, well-executed, and rich in content. A recurring theme in many of these powerful interventions on the Budget was a 12-letter word giving Modi and his coalition sleepless Delhi nights: unemployment.

Article 41 of the Constitution states, “The State shall, within the limits of its economic capacity and development, make effective provision for securing the right to work, to education, and to public assistance in cases of unemployment, old age, sickness and disablement, and in other cases of undeserved want.”

Employment And Food Insecurity

Many MPs in the Opposition quoted CMIE data about the employment rate – which is the ‘proportion of employed persons in the working age population’ – recorded at 37% in June 2024. The Global Hunger Index 2023 was often referred to last week in Parliament – India ranked 111th out of 125 countries. Despite improvements in food production and distribution, food insecurity persists, particularly in marginalised communities. 

Impact On Personal Freedoms

A citizen cannot truly enjoy any liberty when perpetually anxious about her family’s unmet needs. This becomes even more important when the Budget skirts around the issues of health, nutrition, social security, and education. It is difficult to think about personal liberties on an empty stomach. 

MGNREGA

MGNREGA addresses the issue of Right to Work. However, it ensures it as a statutory right, instead of being a Fundamental Right. The latter cannot be taken away by an amendment of the MGNREGA Act. It bears repetition that states have been constantly deprived of MGNREGA funds. The Union owes the West Bengal government alone Rs 7,000 Crores for the scheme. 

In a labour-surplus society, why then is the Union government often selling the family silver to private entities? Two dozen large Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs) have been privatised. This is not the solution. Should it not be the duty of the state to offer the labour force multiple opportunities for employment? There are 30 lakh vacancies in the Union government and government-controlled organisations. What is the road map and timelines for these vacancies to be filled? Parliament is in session. The government must provide answers. 

Education And Skill Development

The Union has an obligation to provide quality education and skill development to improve employability, and guarantee livelihood. But Budget 2024 has allocated only Rs 1.20 lakh crore to education, which is a 2% decline from Actuals (Rs 1.23 lakh crores) in 2023-24. 

Right To Livelihood As A Fundamental Right 

Through judicial interpretation, the Right to Livelihood has been read into the Right to Life, even though it is not explicitly listed among the Fundamental Rights in Part III of the Constitution. The Supreme Court emphasised, “An equally important facet of the right to life is the right to livelihood because no person can live without the means of living, that is, the means of livelihood. If the right to livelihood is not treated as a part of the constitutional right to life, the easiest way of depriving a person of his right to life would be to deprive him of his means of livelihood to the point of abrogation. Such deprivation would not only strip life of its effective content and meaningfulness but also make life impossible to live.”

The Right to Work, outlined in the directive principles, has been interpreted alongside the Rights to Livelihood and Life, evolving into a Fundamental Right through judicial pronouncements. Integrating the Right to Work into Fundamental Rights, and ensuring that policies are designed to create sustainable job opportunities, is paramount to ensuring employment. Even after a tepid performance in the elections, where they were punished by young people, this government refuses to prioritise investment in education and vocational training. 

Only talk about cooperative federalism will not do. States politically opposed to the ruling dispensation are deprived on flimsy grounds for years of their MGNREGA funds. These are funds due to people who have completed their work, and have still not been paid.

Additionally, fostering a more inclusive job market by supporting small businesses and encouraging entrepreneurship can play a critical role in generating employment. By taking these steps, India can better align its economic policies with its constitutional commitments and provide more meaningful support to its citizens.

The Right to Work still requires the state to take responsibility, and appropriate legislative actions, to fully provide citizens with the Right to Life, Livelihood, and Dignity.

Research Credit: Chahat Mangtani

(Derek O’Brien, MP, leads the Trinamool Congress in the Rajya Sabha)

Disclaimer: These are the personal opinions of the author

The story so far: The Union Budget for 2024-25 made it clear that employment was a major priority of the government, with the word getting 23 mentions in the Finance Minister’s speech. With many voters expressing their disenchantment with rising unemployment in the recent election, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has lent his title to a package of schemes on employment.

What is the current state of employment?

According to the Economic Survey, India’s workforce was estimated to be nearly 56.5 crore in 2022-23, of which more than 45% is employed in agriculture, 11.4% in manufacturing, 28.9% in services, and 13% in construction. Officially, the unemployment rate was just 3.2% in that period, but economists note that these statistics do not reflect ground reality, given the large number of underemployed people in the country and the fact that many job seekers continue to work on farms or the unorganised retail sector or as casual labourers. A person is categorised as employed if he pursued any economic activity for at least 30 days in the preceding year.

Almost one in five people in the workforce (18.3%), mostly women, do not receive any wages for their labour, as they are unpaid workers in household enterprises. The urban unemployment rate for the quarter ending March 2024 stood at 6.7%, while youth unemployment stood at 10% in 2022-23. The percentage of people in regular salaried work has dropped from 22.8% in 2017-18 to 20.9% five years later, despite policy efforts to formalise the workforce; many salaried workers do not have access to contracts or social security benefits that usually define a formal worker. The government cites enrolment in the Employees Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) as evidence of formalisation. The EPFO has 7.3 crore contributing subscribers, though total accounts are 30 crore, including inoperative accounts and multiple accounts held by individuals.

What were specific schemes in the package?

Three of the schemes provide employment-linked incentives. The first scheme is meant to support the hiring of first-time employees, with a wage subsidy of up to ₹15,000 paid to the employee, and is expected to cover one crore people. The second is aimed at the hiring of first-time employees, specifically in the manufacturing sector, with wage subsidies to be paid to both employees and employers for four years, with a maximum incentive of 24% of a ₹25,000 monthly wage. The third supports employers who hire new workers, not necessarily first-timers, by reimbursing up to ₹3,000 of their monthly EPFO contribution. In fact, all three schemes are dependent on employees being registered with the EPFO. The fourth scheme aims to upgrade Industrial Training Institutes and boost skilling efforts, with 20 lakh students expected to benefit. The final scheme, which garnered headlines partly because of its similarities to a proposal in the Congress’s manifesto, is aimed at on-the-job skilling, with an ambitious target of one crore youth to be given internships in India’s top companies with a monthly allowance of ₹5,000 for one year, with the companies bearing training costs and 10% of the allowance.

What is in the fine print?

Economists and small industrialists say the conditions and procedures built into these schemes may create obstacles for effective implementation. For instance, the incentive scheme for first-time employees, which offers a ₹15,000 subsidy is paid out in three instalments; the second instalment is only payable if the employee undergoes a compulsory online financial literacy course. “This is impractical. Why should employees in every unrelated sector be expected to do this? And why should this be a condition for this incentive?” asks Himanshu, who teaches at Centre for Economic Studies and Planning, Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU).

More worrying is the clause stating that the subsidy is “to be refunded by the employer if the employment to the first timer ends within 12 months of recruitment.” If the employee switches jobs in 10 months, he has already received the benefit of the scheme, but the employer is required to bear the costs; labour experts say few small employers will be willing to take that risk. The scheme for creating jobs in manufacturing has a minimum requirement of hiring 50 people or 25% of their existing strength, which is a significant number of people to be hired at one go for any firm in return for marginal benefits.

How effective are these schemes likely to be?

These schemes essentially attempt to encourage hiring by reducing the cost of new hires. However, economists note that this is not the main constraint preventing employers from hiring new workers. Anamitra Roychowdhury, a labour economist at JNU, notes that India is already a low wage economy, with real monthly incomes falling over the last five years for the majority of the workforce. “Wage costs are a redundant constraint,” he says, adding that while skilling is certainly needed, it is not the central issue preventing hiring either.

“There is a bigger structural reason why the economy is not able to create jobs, and that is due to insufficient demand, caused by low consumption… and the lack of private investment. And if that comes up, then these costs won’t matter,” notes Amit Basole, professor at Azim Premji University. He adds that these schemes need to be pitched to the niche group of employers for whom such costs do matter, usually small firms with small margins. In fact, Finance Secretary T.V. Somanathan indicated in an interview with The Hindu that this may have been the government’s intention behind the scheme, noting that “fiscal incentives have a role at the margin”.

Editorial | Shuffling the deck: On the Union Budget 2024-25

With regard to formalisation of the workforce, Mr. Basole points out that apart from new people entering the workforce, there are also large numbers seeking to leave agriculture, petty trade, unorganised retail and domestic service. The need is to create formal jobs to keep up with the pace of the supply, which is not happening, as evidenced by the fact that the proportion of salaried workers has actually dropped slightly over the last five years.

What else is needed to create jobs?

“When we think of where we need to create jobs, it should not be in the top 500 companies which are largely capital intensive, but in the MSME (micro, small and medium enterprises) sector, in labour intensive sectors, in small towns. The need is to raise wages there, infuse money into MSMEs, which will have a multiplier effect,” says Mr. Himanshu, recommending a bottoms-up approach. If the urgent requirement is to stimulate demand by increasing consumption, another step could be to raise wages in MGNREGA, the rural jobs scheme, and create a similar employment guarantee scheme for urban workers, says Mr. Roychowdhury. “This would be the more direct approach to kickstart consumption,” he says, noting that the Centre has instead curbed MGNREGA funding.

Women planting paddy seedlings in an agricultural field in Nagaon district of Assam.
| Photo Credit: Ritu Raj Konwar

On March 11, Bahutva Karnataka, a forum for concerned citizens and organisations, released a report titled ‘Employment, Wages and Inequality’, at the Press Club, Bengaluru. The report analyses the progress in various employment-related indicators in the last decade, ever since the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) came to power, including employment generation, formalisation of jobs, and improvement in wages.

As the general elections draw near, the report also examines the progress of the NDA’s employment-related initiatives. In April 2019, for instance, Prime Minister Narendra Modi claimed that 2.5 crore jobs have been added annually. Data reveal that the share of formal employment with social security and other advantages attached to it has remained stagnant. On the other hand, the number of self-employed individuals has increased substantially. Further, while wage earnings have increased when adjusted for inflation, the increase is negligible.

The stagnation is reflected in the share of households earning less than the national floor level minimum wage (NFLMW). About 34% of households in India earned less than the proposed NFLMW of Rs. 375 a day. Further, wage inequality has resulted in widening the gap between the rich and the poor. In 2022, the top 1% and 10% of the population held 22% and 57% of the national income, respectively, while the bottom 50% held 12.7%, according to data from the World Inequality Database.

Chart 1 | The charts compare the share of employment across various employment categories in 2011-12 and 2022-23 for men and women.

Chart appears incomplete? Click to remove AMP mode

Data show that the share of employment in the formal sector remained below 25%. The share of those who were self-employed remained above 50% by 2022-23. While the share of self-employed women was the highest, it also saw the highest growth of 8% points from 56.5% in 2011-12 to 64.3% in 2022-23. According to the report, between 2011-12 and 2022-23, women doing unpaid labour in their family business or farming rose from one in four to one in three due to lack of other remunerative employment and stagnant household earnings.

Also read:Top 1% Indians’ share in national income is higher now than under British-rule: Data

Chart 2 | The chart shows the year-wise average weekly wages, adjusted for inflation, for male and female regular salaried workers and casual labourers.

Data show there has not been any significant growth in income in the last five years across employment categories.

Further, many households still earn less than the NFLMW (Map 3). In 2019, an expert committee, set up by the Ministry of Labour and Employment, recommended that the NFLMW should be at least Rs. 375 per day and Rs. 3,050 per week. Of the 34 States and Union Territories (UTs) analysed, in about 19 of them, more than 20% earned less than Rs. 375 a day or less than Rs. 3,050 a week in 2022-23. In Chhattisgarh and Uttar Pradesh, above 50% of the households earned less than this threshold. The report adds that nearly 30 crore workers make less than the minimum wage.

Map 3 | The map shows the State/UT-wise share of households earning less than the national floor level minimum wage

The stagnancy in income growth among the majority of the population, when juxtaposed with India’s increased GDP per capita, hints at a widening gap between the rich and poor. In the last 10 years, GDP per capita increased by 60%, while close to 35% of the total households earned less than the NFLMW. The share of national wealth held by the wealthiest 10% of the population increased from 63% in 2012 to 64.5% in 2022, while the share held by the poorest 50% reduced further from 6.1% in 2012 to 5.6% in 2022 (Chart 4). The chart shows the year-wise wealth share of the top 10% and the bottom 50% of the population.

Chart 4 | The chart shows the year-wise share of national wealth held by the top 10% and bottom 50% of the population.

Source: ‘Employment, Wages and Inequality’ report

Listen to our Data podcast: Awareness or affordability: Why are cervical cancer screening levels low among Indian women? | Data Point podcast