India’s youth raring to transform its economy

I refer to the commentary “The sad illusion of India’s demographic dividend” (Oct 24).

I agree that the evidence presented, based on a government employment report, stock market and GDP figures as well as bankers’ opinions, can lead to the conclusion drawn on the country’s plight.

The real state of the nation is perhaps better understood by seeking an answer in other quarters.

The enthusiasm that rubbed off on me after I spent a week in India prompted me to present a slightly different perspective that is admittedly low on data, based on anecdotes and drawn from projects on the ground.

I saw the enthusiasm of the youth in cities and adjacent rural regions, an academia-private capital partnership pushing the envelope of economic transformation, civic evangelists driving thought and a government forced to listen for game-changing ideas.

It was an energy level similar to that in South Korea and Shanghai in recent decades, again a personal experience from those times.

Let me begin with a theme familiar in Singapore: Skills mismatch. The Institute of Technical Education’s Education Services (Itees) is training Indians in vocational skills. Tourism demand, for example, is creating opportunities for young job seekers willing to retrain.

Any survey on massive open online courses would show that Indians are among the highest in enrolment numbers, and the day is not far when skill-building programmes such as those delivered by Itees go viral in India.

Just as India’s National Skill Development Corporation has identified tourism as a demand generator, the academia-private partnership has focused on technology-led start-ups and, recently, on social innovation and urban change.

These collaborative endeavours have strong diaspora support and the associated international network. While these are early days, the quality is perhaps world class, influenced by the latest techniques in Silicon Valley and other pockets of free enterprise.

Finally, the smart, passionate and purposeful young Indians I interacted with at scheduled events and in coffee shops, and their earnestness, question the conclusion drawn in the article.

Maybe the future should not be judged by traditional developed-country metrics, especially in India, where the past generation’s energy broke through the colonial burden and set a norm for the creation of independent nations in the 20th century.

One should not underestimate the potential of India’s millennial generation to make a mark that will change the way developing countries can respond to 21st-century challenges.

The need to stay meaningfully engaged is driving this positive behaviour, unlike in the past, when young graduates looked for a job and became cynical and drained by mid-career.

The paucity of traditional jobs may be a boon in disguise for a young nation. While it may be fashionable to write off unconventional approaches to economic development, this century calls for disruptive answers to society’s challenges.