Jobless Growth in Kashmir

This is in response to Sheikh Sofia’s “Youth Unemployment in Kashmir” (GK, 15^th September, 2025), wherein she tried to show the “mismatch between education and job market needs”. The points she emphasized, the data she highlighted, and the arguments she put forth are both eye-opening and shocking. The unemployment rate in J&K, especially in Kashmir valley, is at an alarming percentage (17.4%), far higher than the national average of 10 %. “The (unemployment) rate for women in cities”, she further states, “is even higher at 28.6 percent”. “The issue of youth joblessness in Kashmir”, put forth by Sofia as a key argument, “is a mix of education, ambition, and economic policy”. This writeup, in this context, is an elaboration of her arguments and viewpoints.

A Crisis of Educated Youth: Every year, thousands of educated young men and women graduate from universities. In Kashmir, yet many end up adding their names to the swelling list of the unemployed. Expressing their frustration, an Economics postgraduate, said: “I have applied for over 30 government jobs, but nothing has worked out. Private sector opportunities are almost non-existent here.”

This mismatch between education and job availability is deepening frustration among youth. There are various related patterns of mismatches that occur in the labour market. The diversity of the relationship among them is the mismatch between education and employment and the mismatch of skills and qualifications in the labour market. A recent study on “Job-Education Mismatch” found that individual character, skills, education and job characteristics have the possibilities to determine job mismatch. This shows that the graduates character and experience have an influence on the mismatch. Besides that, job search cost, inconsistent information, and the method used by graduate to find job opportunities can be triggers for job mismatch. However, there are certain individuals who receive jobs that don’t match their education and skills. This happens due to several factors, including salary and promotion opportunities as well as good work environment.

Furthermore, the privilege of some professions is a factor in the mismatch between education and employment. For example, graduates from human capital are more likely to obtain an education-job match. While graduates from general human capital are more likely to face horizontal mismatch. Graduates in some fields, such as business, management, and economics have a high probability of vertical mismatch.

Reasons for the Jobless Growth: Most of the growth in Kashmir in last 20 years can be attributed to growth of capital-intensive services, like IT, finance, etc., which results in very high value of growth without corresponding increase in employment. Labour intensive services, like education, healthcare, tourism have not observed similar growth and hence employment potential of service sector has remained unexplored. High capital intensity in manufacturing even in MSMEs, apart from large scale industries due to a combination of rigid labour laws, schemes like “Export Promotion Capital Goods”. Poor training of workforce, that is lack of skilled development among workers—both semi-skilled and unskilled—to match the requirements of modern industries and service sector.

Remedial Measures: To break the cycle, policy makers need to shift focus from statistics of growth to employment-centric development. This includes developing investment in medium scale enterprise, mainly in labour intensive sector; better training of work force by developing more coordination between industry and academics; promoting startups through ease of entering the market; contract enforcement improvement; reduction in logistical cost, etc. Promotion of alternative source of income in rural areas; e.g., Mega Food Park Scheme, PM Kusum Scheme, Animal Husbandry Development Fund. Labour law reforms to identify flexibility in labour contract, introduce provisions for entrepreneurship, protection for un-organised worker, incentive for workers training, etc.

Yet, unless the region creates large scale, stable job avenues, these efforts will remain piecemeal. Jobless growth in Kashmir is not just economic concern, but a social challenge that requires immediate, inclusive, and innovative solution.

Aadil Gulzar is a Postgraduate in Economics and a civil service aspirant.