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 put up, Mallikarjunan wrote, “I believe 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 have been shortlisted for additional analysis.”
He pointed to structural flaws in India’s training system, itemizing 5 key points:
1. Many IIT college students cease learning after cracking JEE, making them unfit for real-world jobs. 2. Non-public faculties and universities fail to offer significant training. 3. First-generation graduates usually earn levels with out buying actual data. 4. College students stay unaware they’re being misled as a consequence of a damaged system with outdated syllabi, ineffective exams, and poorly educated academics. 5. Consequently, tens of millions of graduates are solely fitted to name heart or clerical jobs — roles that AI will quickly substitute.
“So India just isn’t a demographic dividend however a catastrophe,” he warned.
Mallikarjunan suggested college students to take cost of their studying by learning from reputed worldwide books, utilizing NPTEL programs, and dealing on impartial tasks to develop hands-on abilities.
His put up struck a chord with many professionals who echoed his issues concerning the job market and lack of sensible abilities amongst graduates. One person known 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, 1000’s of candidates compete, highlighting the shortage of high quality employment.
Mallikarjunan, nonetheless, dismissed the notion that startups could possibly be a fast repair. “Startups providing quick-fix options for a damaged training system is like taking paracetamol for most cancers,” he wrote in response to a remark.
One other person shared their private battle regardless of holding a PhD and international expertise, saying, “Until I study AI/ML or some JavaScript, it is exhausting 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 endure from a poverty of creativeness. They solely run ponzi schemes the place loss is immediately proportional to turnover. They haven’t any understanding or abdomen for deep tech,” he wrote.