| India's economy is expanding steadily and sectors such | | | | one such company. Its radiator cap assembly line |
| as information technology are winning new jobs for the | | | | employs just 33 workers, the same number as a |
| country. | | | | decade ago, even though production has doubled. The |
| For several years after finishing college, 32-year-old | | | | factory manager, R. Premkumar, says that holding the |
| Lakshmi Narayan looked for a job in an office. When | | | | line on hiring has helped the company remain |
| the hunt proved futile, he began driving a delivery van. | | | | competitive in the global market. |
| He said he had hoped to do something better, but | | | | "We are also relying on automation. We wanted to |
| nothing came his way. Now, he does not even try, | | | | have the overheads come down," he said. "More of |
| preferring to hold down the job he has. | | | | reliability is getting achieved than what could be done |
| For people like Mr. Narayan, headline-grabbing news | | | | by the pure hand." |
| about information technology jobs flowing into India | | | | Others, such as the Tata group, one of India's largest |
| from Western countries has little meaning. | | | | conglomerates, have cut their work forces by nearly |
| India's booming IT and software sector employs about | | | | one-third in recent years despite expansion. |
| two million people. But R. Nagaraj, an economist at | | | | Jayati Ghosh, an economics professor at Jawaharlal |
| Bombay's Indira Gandhi Institute for Development | | | | Nehru University, says the situation is dismal in both |
| Research, notes that is a fraction of the country's | | | | urban and rural areas. In cities, an estimated 10 percent |
| work force of 400 million. | | | | of Indians are employed in the organized sector, the |
| "These jobs are concentrated in few pockets like | | | | rest are in unregulated jobs such as pulling rickshaws. |
| Bangalore, Hyderabad and Gurgaon where they are | | | | And, she says, in rural areas, most people find work |
| very visible and these young boys and girls get fairly | | | | for only half the year, when crops are sown and |
| high paying jobs, but these are only small specks in the | | | | harvested. |
| ocean of unemployed people in towns and villages," he | | | | "In the urban areas, there has been a switch from |
| said. "If you go to smaller towns, you find that | | | | formal and organized work to unorganized sectors, |
| educated young people do not find adequate jobs." | | | | which means the work is more insecure, it is more |
| With one of the fastest-growing economies in the | | | | casual, it is more self-employed and home-based |
| world, it may seem odd that India is struggling with high | | | | work," explained Ms. Ghosh. "They have lost their |
| unemployment. That is India's paradox, say economists. | | | | regular jobs and now they are pushing a cart selling a |
| Its economy is growing fast, but not fast enough to | | | | fruit on the streets. Agricultural employment is lower |
| hand out jobs to 10 million people who enter the work | | | | than it was, so you really have a complete stagnation. |
| force each year. And there is a huge backlog of | | | | " |
| people who lost jobs in recent years and have yet to | | | | Economists and government planners say the problem |
| find new ones. | | | | is huge, but can be tackled. Mr. Nagarraj at the Indira |
| The official unemployment rate is about eight percent | | | | Gandhi Institute says India's bulging foreign exchange |
| of the working population. Economists, however, say | | | | reserves of $120 billion and food reserves offer an |
| the real rate is much higher, because millions of people | | | | opportunity. |
| have given up looking for jobs or have never | | | | "Two things we have positive: we have large stocks |
| registered as unemployed. | | | | of foreign exchange and food grain which we did not |
| In the decade since India liberalized its economy, | | | | have earlier, and this can be used effectively to create |
| companies have steadily laid off workers as they | | | | employment and industrial growth," he said. "A |
| focused on efficiency and technology to become | | | | large-scale rural works programs is something which |
| globally competitive. | | | | has to be undertaken to make any dent in this mass |
| State-owned businesses pared their payrolls by | | | | unemployment." |
| offering early retirement plans to employees. The job | | | | The job shortage was considered a major factor in |
| losses went all the way from managers to factory | | | | the election defeat of the previous Hindu nationalist |
| workers. An estimated 15 percent of all manufacturing | | | | government last May. Aware that it must address the |
| jobs have been lost since 1997. | | | | problem, the new Congress government recently |
| The manufacturing sector is expanding but it is not | | | | introduced a food-for-work program in the country's |
| creating new jobs. Many factory managers, | | | | poorest districts. |
| discouraged from taking on new employees by laws | | | | But government officials admit that creating enough |
| that make firing impossible, are using automation to | | | | employment for India's billion plus people is a challenge |
| avoid adding staff. | | | | that has no easy or quick answers. |
| Sundram Fastners, a Madras exporter of car parts, is | | | | |