Source: Times of India. 5/7/09
Source: Marie Claire, India- June 2009
Source: The Hindu-Nxg
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Harnessing Indian youth power
25 May 2009, 0434 hrs IST, Rajesh Shukla,
Youth power is believed to be one of the most important assets for economic growth. This becomes even more significant when viewed in the context of a fast ageing population in the developed nations. Consider this: in 2020, an average Indian is expected to be only 29 years old against 37 years in China and the US, 45 years in West Europe and 48 years in Japan. This is the “demographic dividend” that research analysts keep harping about — by 2020, the working age population in India is expected to grow by more than 47 million people.
The power the youth can wield was recently on display during the general elections as they played a crucial role in boosting the UPA’s performance and paving the way for a second consecutive term in governing the nation. However, youth power can be a double-edged sword if it is not managed efficiently. As the working population grows by leaps and bounds, it is imperative that this new generation of workforce is equipped with skills and knowledge if the nation is to harness its human capital potential.
More importantly, skills- and knowledge-accretion need to be in sync with the aspirations and ambitions of the youth. Failure to do so could result in a host of societal problems, and the ensuing rise in unemployment and poverty could drag down India’s economic prospects in the not-too-distant future. The focus should, therefore, be not only on numbers but on quality of this human resource.
India’s economic planners have time and again focused attention on the youth. The first Planning Commission in 1952 recognised the vital role that youth can play in the development of the nation. In 1985, after the UN declared it as the International Year of the Youth, Indian policymakers set about preparing a National Youth Policy, which was adopted in 1988, which was then revised in 2003. Despite this, few initiatives were taken to translate these policies into action on the ground.
A significant initiative has recently been launched by the National Book Trust which has proposed a ‘National Action Plan for Readership Development among the Youth (NAPRDY)’ on the occasion of its golden jubilee celebrations. As the first major step envisaged under the proposed NAPRDY, NBT and NCAER are undertaking a ‘National Youth Readership Survey-2009’, a national survey of over 35,000 youth covering all the states and UTs among in rural and urban India.
The survey will cover major topics such as demographic profile, patterns of use of information sources, readership status, attitudes, determinants of readership, etc. This initiative is expected to provide policymakers and other key stakeholders, including the corporate sector, key insights into the attitudes and usership trends among Indian youth.
But before addressing the youth issues, it’s necessary to first arrive at a definition of youth. Sociologically speaking, youth refers to a ‘category’ rather than a ‘group’; the difference being that a category has diverse or heterogeneous elements unlike a group which is sociologically similar in its composition. Youth relates to an age group that is transiting between childhood and adulthood and may comprise of a conglomeration of sub-groups with differing social roles, expectations and aspirations.
However, there is no uniformity in the definition among different countries. The UN defines youth as those in the age-group of 15-24 years. The UNICEF defines youth in the age bracket of 15-30 years. On the other hand, India’s National Youth Policy (NYP, 2003) considers all individuals in the age-group of 13-35 years as youth population. NYP further states that all persons within this age group are unlikely to be one homogeneous group and divides into two broad groups: 13-19 years (adolescent age group) and 20-35 years.
Understanding Indian youth: Census 2001 provides valuable information on age, sex and education levels of population and some insights on youth.
The total youth (13-34 years) population is 390 million (38% of total population) and is expected to rise to 440 million by 2020.
70% (271 million) youth reside in over 600,000 villages.
72% (282 million) youth are literate.
41% of literate youth are 13-19 years old, 23% are 20-24 years old and 36% are in the 25-34 years old. There is no significant difference among males and females.
59% of literate youth are male. Little over 7% (21 million) of literate youth are graduates and above, 53% have passed higher secondary (12th class).
62% of graduate youth are male.
India is comfortably placed to reap the benefits of this demographic dividend for at least the next 12 years. But as mentioned earlier, size alone is not sufficient. The quality of human resource is an important aspect. Indian youth need to be equipped with knowledge and skills to compete globally. As a recent BusinessWeek article pointed out “the primary ambition of young Indians from the smallest villages to the largest cities is to ‘become rich’.”
But the gap between expectations and reality is too wide — and some would even say unbridgeable. According to trends revealed by NSS (National Sample Survey, Government of India):
Indian households spend a minuscule 3.58% of their total household expenditure on education which translates into Rs 73 per month for rural and Rs 230 per month for urban in 2004-05. This has marginally increased from 2.42% in 1993-94.
In real terms, expenditure on education by households increased both in the rural and urban India between 1993-94 and 2004-05. The rural household’s education spend in 2004-05 was roughly about 44% of what urban households were spending on education in 1993-94.
In 2004-05, rural households spent roughly about the same amount on education and on consumption of pan/tobacco and other intoxicants. Significantly, education featured way down on the list of priorities, and just above entertainment, in terms of household expenditure.
The expenditure on tuition fees and private tutor fees, as subsets of education expenses, reported highest growth. On the other hand the expenditure on library charges has gone down.
The above figures are definitely a cause for concern. A strong culture of reading is a prerequisite for any society that expects to compete in a fast globalising environment. Television, the Internet and other communication have raised the expectations of the youth. And unless this gap between aspirations and abilities is adequately addressed, it could turn into a ‘problem’ rather than a ‘resource’, so don’t waste the opportunity.
Source: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/4573461.cms?prtpage=1
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