‘No need for concerns about job losses’: Mandaviya says unemployment rate will fall below 3%

Union Labour Minister Mansukh Mandaviya has said that there is no cause for concern about job losses. He said India would reduce the unemployment rate to below 3 per cent in the future. 

Speaking at the Question Hour in the Lok Sabha, Mandaviya said that the current unemployment rate came down from 6 per cent in 2017-18 to 3.2 per cent. Mandaviya assured that unemployment rate would further slip to below 3 per cent. He credited employment generation under the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government for the dip in the unemployment rates. 

Labour force participation went up to 44 per cent from 38 per cent in 2017-18, while the work-population ratio rose to 40 per cent from 31 per cent during the same period. 

There is no need for concern about job losses and there is no lack of jobs, Mandaviya added.   

Mandaviya’s assurance came after Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced three major schemes for employment generation. A first-time employment scheme will offer one month's wage to new workforce entrants across all sectors, and is expected to benefit 2.1 crore youths. A direct benefit transfer of one month's salary, up to Rs 15,000, will be provided in three installments, with an eligibility limit of Rs 1 lakh monthly salary. Employers will be reimbursed Rs 3,000 per month towards EPFO contributions for two years for each additional employee. The initiative aims to add 50 lakh new jobs and benefit 30 lakh youth. Additionally, the Model Skill Loan Scheme has been revised to allow loans up to Rs 7.5 lakh with a government-backed guarantee fund, benefiting 25,000 students annually. The government will also support higher education loans up to Rs 10 lakh for domestic institutions, and 1 lakh students will receive e-vouchers each year.

However, Finance Secretary Dr TV Somanathan said that the Centre had multiple obstacles in job creation and one of them was the skilling deficit. "Skilling and educational system needs improvement. Let's be realistic, we have the skilling and educational system we have today, we can't wait for its improvement in the long run - it will improve. We have a new education policy and things are happening but it won't happen tomorrow,” he told Business Today TV.