New Delhi [India], August 24 (ANI): Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Monday raised concerns over unemployment among youth, saying there was "unrest, disappointment and frustration" among them due to lack of job creation and challenges in the education system.
She said the lack of focus on manufacturing, MSMEs and policies affecting small businesses had impacted job creation in the country.
Speaking to ANI after the Joint Committee meeting on the "One Nation, One Election", the Congress MP said, "We already know that the unemployment rates are the highest they've ever been in 40 years. It's very clear that there's a lot of unrest, there's a lot of disappointment, and frustration amongst the youth. We've seen that in the student protests."
"It's a combination of a failed education system and no job creation in the last 12 years. There's been no emphasis on manufacturing. There's been no emphasis on MSMEs. There are certain policies that are crippling small businesses, people who are other job providers, and even the agricultural sector. I think it's something that at least we have been raising for a while," she said.
Her remarks came amid a NITI Aayog report, "Reimagining Skilling for Viksit Bharat@2047", which stated that an estimated 8.7 crore Indians aged 15-29 were not engaged in education, employment or any form of training.
The report, based on data from the 78th round of the National Sample Survey conducted in 2021, categorised them as NEET youth.
Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge also targeted Centre over NITI Aayog's report, alleging that "Modi Government has completely ravaged young India's entire pathway from Education to Employment. NITI Aayog estimates that 8.7 crore young Indians aged 15 to 29 are neither in education, employment nor training. Nearly 88% are engaged in domestic duties. At the same time, youth unemployment stands at 15.6%, rising to a shocking 19.5% among young women. [PLFS, July 2026]
"Three questions to @narendramodi ji, 1. Where are the jobs after graduation? Graduates constitute 67% of unemployed Indians aged 20 to 29, while unemployment among graduates aged 15 to 25 is nearly 40%. Families spend their savings, students take education loans and earn degrees, only to discover that there are simply not enough jobs. 2. What happened to the promise of 2 crore jobs every year? By that promise, India should have seen 24 crore jobs in 12 years. Instead, lakhs of government posts remain vacant while secure employment is increasingly replaced by contractual and part-time work. 3. Who is turning India's demographic dividend into a demographic disaster? Expensive and inadequate education, paper leaks, delayed recruitment, a widening skills gap and disappearing quality jobs have put the future of an entire generation at risk," Kharge said.
Kharge further questioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi, recalling his promise to achieve what previous governments could not do in 70 years.
"You, Modi ji, promised to achieve what previous governments could not do in 70 years! You have certainly delivered on that boast: an Education system that costs more, infested with RSS, examinations young Indians cannot trust, and degrees that increasingly come without jobs," he said. (ANI)
"Unemployment highest in 40 years": Priyanka Gandhi cites NITI Aayog report on employment
