Khursheed Ahmad Wani
With passing of every year, the unemployment rate is undulating in Jammu and Kashmir. According to the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE), the unemployment rate in the Union Territory for the month of December 2021 has declined to 15 percent in comparison to rate recorded at 21.2 percent in November 2021.
Unemployment is a serious social and economic problem that affects the whole nine yards but is often overlooked. Ever wondered why this happens? This is because the policies are a bit nugatory and a pointless observation. The economy is underdeveloped and role of economic growth is very slow. This slow growth fails to provide enough unemployment opportunities to the increasing population.
Every year thousands of young people graduate from different universities. Unemployment leaves most of these young people unemployed, which in turn increases unemployment. After completing higher education, of course, young people are physically and mentally mature and optimistic for the fulfillment of their dreams, but the current situation is very offbeat. Millions of educated youth are languishing in their homes due to lack of employment opportunities. They are even becoming needy for their survival. Despite having vast knowledge in various fields, they are living their life in the doldrums.
Unemployed youth now face only sleepless nights, health problems and mood swings. An unemployed young man who moves forward according to his age is always sad and does not know when good humour turns into sadness. No one is ready to own them and realize how hapless they feel.
Many physical, psychological and social problems are associated with unemployment. It is also causing an enlightened mind to suffer from mental illness. It also causes psychological depression, a sense of loss of purpose, feelings of rejection, worry, stress, anxiety, trauma, suicide, obesity and encourages educated youth to become addicted to drugs. It increases poverty, domestic violence, illegal and obnoxious activities in society.
The wrath of poverty is hovering over our heads. Sitting idle at home is a mental anguish. There is a huge social impact associated with being an unemployed youth. While talking or discussing any issue, an unemployed youth suddenly forgets what he was saying. This only happens when a person’s mind is muddled. When there is no employment, there is no great expectation from life. Life becomes a burden in every way. Taunts have to be heard and tolerated.
Late marriage is the cause of unemployment because an unemployed person cannot meet his needs and support his family. The young man who used to live a comfortable and dignified life becomes very different after unemployment. It’s like the effects of ink falling on a blank sheet of paper that they don’t expect, it completely changes their lifestyle. It’s like an ugly upheaval that buries their dreams in coffins. Despite being educated, they cannot do anything for their society. Their hands and pockets have shrunk from being empty. Their eyes are full of fog and tears. They are always living a helpless life along with off-beat hunches. The biggest pain for them is the fear of failure that overwhelms them due to unstable and impractical policies framed by policymakers from time to time. They did not wear their hearts on their sleeves and often cry for the moon though arduous because they are ready to endure any situation. The ray of hope is becoming a black sheep for the family.
Jammu and Kashmir’s path to peace and prosperity is to find jobs for unemployed youth. The real asset of future are our youth but unfortunately their lives are sinking into darkness due to the inability of our system to create sufficient employment opportunities.
To curb rising unemployment, the government needs to review its policies and come up with new policies that are conducive to humanity. The government cannot provide jobs to all the unemployed at the same time but formulate a policy for them which will reduce the unemployment rate. This will be possible only when the government creates opportunities in government sector. They should promote, strengthen and support the private sector which is also a beacon of hope for the unemployed.
Government should encourage self employment and ensure how can access to finance be made easier for self-employed youth. All these will help reduce the rate. The government should take steps to address this issue and save our society from falling into the abyss of crisis. If they do not, it seems that Jammu and Kashmir is on the brink of an unprecedented unemployment crisis that cannot be stopped. Because there is no sign of the private sector where thousands of people work. This will cause the economy to collapse, affecting the whole nine yards of the society. Awareness about technical education is an important need of the hour.
It is the responsibility of the government to provide effective counselling to the unemployed youth from time to time and by implementing government schemes at the grassroot level, the youth will become self-employed instead of employers. Due to which the confidence and morale of the youth of Jammu and Kashmir will increase and at the same time the economy will be boosted.
(The author is a teacher)
