Growth Vs Employment

It is a paradox that despite a robust rate of economic growth during the period 2000 -2012 the employment market registered a growth of only 2.2% per year (NSSO’s latest survey). While agriculture sector contributed hardly any growth, the manufacturing sector provided jobs @ 4% per annum only. A satisfactory growth emerged from the services sector esp. in retail trade, construction and personal services offering low-paying and tough jobs.
Agriculture and industry should have generated more number of jobs as they enjoy reasonable and adequate sums of money in the annual budgets of both central and state governments. It appears millions of man-day’s created through MNREGA only provided mostly temporary and semi-permanent assets in the country side while large chunks of public funding have had been channelized through panchayat institutions. Services sector too provide temporary and informal employment in the unorganized market for those workers who are largely at the mercy of employers.


It is no doubt a challenge to all the political parties facing general elections to Lok Sabha in 2014 summer to indicate specifically the manner in which they would ensure jobs to all the unemployed persons in the next decade.
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