[Mission 2024] INSIGHTS DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS + PIB SUMMARY 26 December 2023

GS Paper 3

 Syllabus: Unemployment

Source: TH

 Context: India is facing a jobs crisis, marked by low labour demand for regular wage work.

Status of High unemployment rate in India:

• The unemployment rate in the country has consistently increased over the last two decades – from 2% in 2010 to 5% in 2015 and 6.1% in 2018.
• According to the Center for Monitoring Indian Economy, it was over 7% for most of 2021 and 2022
• Over 42% of India’s graduates under 25 were unemployed in 2021-22 as per the State of Working India 2023.
• Despite a rise in GDP growth during the 2000s, the employment growth rate remained unresponsive, indicating a phenomenon of jobless growth

Types of Employment in India:

Causes for high unemployment rate:

• Structural shortfalls:
  • In the past 40 years, economic growth in India has aided a structural shift away from agricultural jobs.
  • However, this has mainly moved to construction and not to high-value sectors such as manufacturing or services.
  • In the non-farm sector, the link between GDP growth and the pace of job creation has weakened over time, leading to rising unemployment.
• Shortfalls with social infrastructure:
  • While India has made huge progress in improving its physical infrastructure, it has fallen behind on human infrastructure like education and skills.
• Urban-rural disparity:
  • Physical infrastructure investments are focused more on urban areas, which benefited in the 1990s.
  • However, from 2000 onwards, with the pace of de-urbanisation of manufacturing gathering momentum, the manufacturing sector is migrating away from urban to rural areas to remain cost-competitive.
  • However, poor physical and human infrastructure in rural areas has constrained the growth drivers and limited the size of the manufacturing sector in India.
• Education-skills mismatch:
  • Jobs catering to the qualifications of graduates who have studied subjects like agriculture, history, English, philosophy and communication are difficult, and increasingly impossible, to come by.
  • On the one hand, the young find themselves overqualified for manual labour jobs. On the other, they lack the technical skills required for high-paying jobs in IT and professional services.
    • In the absence of suitable employment in the private sector for this section, many turn to government jobs.
    • However, a rapid increase in the supply of educated youth, coupled with a gradual reduction of public-sector vacancies has resulted in stiff competition for even the most junior positions in government offices.

Jobless Growth in India:

• Two types of jobless growth in India:
  • Weak Responsiveness: Automation and tech introduction lead to jobless growth, but increasing GDP can still boost employment.
  • High Responsiveness: In India, labour productivity growth is strongly linked to output growth. So even though GDP increases, output will increase only if labour productivity increases.

Social Impact of Unemployment in India:

Various Approaches to growth and employment:

Measures to address unemployment:

• India needs good infrastructure, both physical and human, to create more jobs.
• There has to be a convergence in the paths of urbanisation and industrialisation to streamline job creation.
• Tier II cities should be focused as these new cities have the potential to generate 70% of the country’s new jobs and GDP over the next 20 years.
• National Employment Policy (NEP): Implement a focused policy considering both the demand and supply sides. Enhance workforce quality, bridge skills gaps, and create public jobs.
• Urban MGNREGA: Introduce an urban version to provide income security for informal jobs and create public assets in urban areas.
• Industrialization and Agricultural Investment: Rapid industrialization and increased investment in agriculture create more jobs and boost productivity.
• Diversify Agriculture and Promote Agro-Processing: Shift to labour-intensive crops, promote agro-processing for export, reduce wastage, and increase value addition.
• Expand Education and Healthcare: Enhance human capital through education and healthcare expansion, providing employment in the social sector.
• Reform Education, Provide Vocational Training: Improve skills and employability through education system reforms and vocational/technical training.

Conclusion

More than 50% of India’s population is below the age of 25 and more than 65% Is below the age of 35. India’s young demographic is an asset in an ageing world. This clearly presents the case for India to address the jobless growth scenario.

Mains Links:

Most of the unemployment in India is structural in nature. Examine the methodology adopted to compute unemployment in the country and suggest improvements. (UPSC 2023)

Prelims Links:

Facts for Prelims (FFP)

Source: DTE

 Context: The article discusses the association of Apostle Bartholomew with agriculture in Goa, particularly during the harvest festival called Konsachem.

What is Konsachem?

It is an important harvest festival celebrated in Goa, primarily in August. Both Hindus and Catholics participate in their unique ways. The festival involves blessing the first sheaves of rice when harvested.

For Goan Catholics, the peak of the celebration occurs on August 24, the Feast Day of Saint Bartholomew (his name meaning ‘son of the furrows’), one of the 12 Apostles of Jesus Christ, who visited India in 55 AD.

Before him, Saint Thomas arrived in India in 52 AD

Facts for Prelims (FFP)

Source: TH

 Context: Metal engraving, a traditional craft practised across North Africa and West Asia for centuries, has gained international recognition by being added to UNESCO’s intangible heritage list.

North African metal art refers to the traditional craft of manually cutting words or symbols into metal, particularly jewellery and household objects.

This longstanding artistic tradition has been practised across North Africa and West Asia for centuries. The art form involves intricate engraving techniques applied to various metals, such as copper, silver, and gold.

Facts for Prelims (FFP)

Source: TH

Facts for Prelims (FFP)

Source: TH

Context: The Indian government is exploring options to reinstate tax remission benefits for sugar exports, which were excluded from the Remission of Duties and Taxes on Export Products (RoDTEP) scheme in June 2022.

• Sugar was moved to the ‘restricted’ category as a precautionary measure to enhance domestic availability and prevent a surge in prices.
• The sugar industry has appealed to reclassify sugar into the ‘free’ category with certain conditions, such as obtaining permissions from the Directorate of Sugar for exports.

Facts for Prelims (FFP)

Source: TH

 Context: China, the leading global processor of rare earths, has imposed a ban on the export of technology essential for extracting and separating these strategic metals.

• This action is part of a revision to the list of technologies considered vital for national security.
• The ban covers not only technology related to extraction and separation but also extends to the export of production technology for rare earth metals, alloy materials, and specific rare earth magnets.
• This move by China coincides with efforts by Europe and the United States to reduce dependence on Chinese rare earths, which currently account for 90% of the world’s refined output.

Facts for Prelims (FFP)

Source: DTE

 Context: In a groundbreaking discovery, scientists have observed rapid evolution in a flowering plant, Viola arvensis (field pansy), in Paris, France. The plant is producing less nectar and smaller flowers to attract fewer pollinators, displaying signs of self-pollination.

What are the reason for the evolution?

Changes in the environment especially due to anthropogenic activities have limited the population of pollinators (such as Bees). In such a situation, plants evolve to self-pollinate itself.

What is Self-pollination?

It is a reproductive process in plants where pollen from a flower’s male reproductive organs (anther) fertilizes the female reproductive organs (stigma) of the same flower or another flower on the same plant.

• The mechanism ensures the plant’s ability to reproduce without relying on external pollinators like insects or wind.

Mechanism of the Self-Pollination:

1. Anther and Stigma Proximity: In self-pollinating plants, the anther (producing pollen) is close to the stigma (receiving pollen) within the same flower.
2. Pollen Transfer: Pollen grains are transferred from the anther to the stigma, either by physical contact or through the plant’s internal mechanisms.
3. Fertilization: The pollen tube grows down the style to the ovary, where fertilization takes place, resulting in the formation of seeds.
4. Genetic Similarity: Since both the pollen and the ovule come from the same plant, the offspring are genetically identical to the parent, leading to limited genetic diversity.

Self-pollination ensures reproductive success, especially in environments with limited pollinators, but it can also reduce genetic variability in plant populations and risk to the plant-pollinator interaction system.

Facts for Prelims (FFP)

Source: IE

 Context: INS Imphal, the third warship of Project 15B forming the Visakhapatnam class stealth-guided missile destroyers, is set to be commissioned into the Indian Navy.

• The commissioning of INS Imphal holds special significance, being the largest and most advanced destroyer named after a city from the northeast.

Features:

• The Visakhapatnam class is recognized as one of the most advanced ship classes in the Indian Navy, capable of independent offensive operations.
• The arsenal of the Visakhapatnam class includes BrahMos surface-to-surface cruise missiles, vertically launched Barak-8 surface-to-air missiles, a 127 mm main gun, AK-630 30mm guns for close-point engagement, indigenously developed 533 mm torpedo launchers, and RBU-6000 anti-submarine rocket launchers.
• Strategically, destroyers play a vital role in naval operations, protecting fleets and carrier battle groups from short-range attackers.
• It can operate independently and is well-equipped for network-centric warfare, utilizing information technology and computer networking tools.

This pays tribute to Manipur’s historical contributions to India’s freedom struggle, emphasizing the region’s importance in national security, sovereignty, and prosperity.