India is moving through a rapid economic boom and it is the right time to invest in Human capital.
Only a well-nourished and healthy population can build a futuristic workforce that can power the fourth industrial revolution.
What is the background of the issue?
India’s major employment generator IT-services has witnessed tremendous pressure through automation, digitisation, cloud computing and restrictions to outsourcing among developed countries.
Globalisation and technology are accelerating both job creation and destruction.
Some estimates have put the risk of automation as high as half of current jobs, while others forecast a considerably lower number of 9 per cent.
All occupations will go through change and it has been found that on average one-third of the skill sets required to perform today’s jobs will be wholly new by 2020.
There is a growing gap between job creation and the needs of our machine-powered future.
There needs to be a cohesive plan to fundamentally strengthen this workforce so that India does not miss the bus on the fourth industrial revolution.
What measures should be made to tackle the change?
Enhance skills
In essence, developing and empowering human capital to be able to shift to the new technology world seamlessly, should be the top priority of governments.
India was late in adapting to the changes catalysed during the first and second industrial revolution leading to a century of lost growth and decline in living standards.
New learnings
Integration of higher education with skills and vocational education.
Attracting the most credible talent to the teaching profession.
Building global recognition to the education system.
Streamlining regulation to attract credible private sector entities to education are some structural changes which are needed for transforming education.
Prolonged approach
A well-nourished and healthy population is necessary for building a futuristic workforce.
Here, a four-pronged approach is required:
Raise public healthcare spend to 3 per cent of GDP.
Increase commitment to Non-communicable diseases at par with infectious diseases.
Develop a sustainable mechanism to fund universal healthcare.
Build a robust referral and preventive healthcare mechanism to reduce burden on tertiary care.
What is the way forward?
As the future grows more uncertain, the only way forward is to strengthen the core of the country and predictably India’s core opportunity is its human capital.
Access to high speed internet, multidisciplinary learning, design thinking, data science and information filtration capabilities are typical for making a future ready workforce.
It is virtually impossible to learn future skills for future jobs.
Even the best crystal gazing is unlikely to predict the changes across industries.
The best foot forward is to develop a human capital that is physically and emotionally vibrant, flexible and possesses multiple skill sets to be able to seamlessly move around the blurring dividing lines among various industries.
Health and education will be the first basic inputs to develop and sustain a healthy, highly skilled workforce.
