IBNLive : Nandan Nilekani's Blog : The last chance

IBNLive : Nandan Nilekani's Blog : The last chance:

"The NDA government had made a stab at labour reforms and backtracked at the outcry, and while the UPA government had plenty of reformers in its midst, it sidestepped these critical issues. Unless the next government at the Centre takes up these reforms and resists both the inevitable outcry that will come from interest groups and the temptations for easy shortcuts like reservations, we will see our biggest promise - our demographics - become our albatross. As millions of young people with high aspirations enter the workforce and find they neither have the skills to get a proper job, nor the ecosystem that creates proper jobs, the disappointment is going to be palpable. Almost every crisis we have today whether it is the atavism in Mangalore or the parochialism in Mumbai can ultimately be traced to unemployed and underemployed youth. Without quick action the demographic 'dividend' could well turn out to be a demographic 'disaster'. The next five years is our final chance."