Punjab is not reaping the demographic dividend of its working population mainly due to the lack of a comprehensive employment policy. In Punjab, persons in the working-age population (15-59 years) constitute 69.3% of the total population against the national average of 66.4%, reveals the Sample Registration System Statistical Report-2024.
Event Context
The report also indicates that the window of demographic advantage will close soon due to the lower share of children and higher share of the elderly population in Punjab compared to the national average.
Traditional lecture method grounded in theory predominate in teaching pedagogy. Practicum is not integrated into curriculum delivery. The end result of over emphasis on theory and neglect of hands-on experience is students having degrees but majority are unemployable.
Set up state agency to facilitate overseas employment
In the way forward, Punjab should formulate an employment policy particularly for promoting employment in private sector. In this regard, a task force comprising experts and the stakeholders may be constituted for suggesting a roadmap for generating one crore jobs spread over 15 years including for disguised unemployed in agriculture and flexible jobs for senior citizens to utilise their lifelong knowledge and skills.
The Punjab government like southern states should set up a state agency for facilitating overseas employment. This policy in addition to overseas jobs, would also help in eliminating unscrupulous travel agents sending Punjabis abroad through illegal routes.
The government should prepare a roadmap for structural changes in economy for promoting knowledge-based industries and high-tech services having huge job potential for educated. For boosting jobs in fintech and IT companies, Mohali can be developed as a Finance Tech-city on the pattern of Gujarat GIFT city.
Focus on AI, automation
For improving employability, curriculum should combine theory and practicum. Landscape of job market is changing fast due to technological changes like AI and automation. Many jobs are becoming obsolete and new are emerging.
Curriculum should be revised regularly for catering changing job market. Educational institutions should move from generic courses to job -centric and futuristic courses. Further, in academic bodies developing curriculum, other stakeholders should also be involved. Professionals from industry and other sectors should be associated with teaching.
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Reasons of rising joblessness include government’s weak programmes for employment, lack of policy for overseas employment, pace and nature of economic development, curriculum development and delivery mainly grounded in theory and eschewing practicum, and low employability.
Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana are prompting overseas employment and earning huge remittances. Kerala has set up two government agencies- NORKA Roots, a wing of the department of non-resident Keralites affairs, and The Overseas Development and Employment Promotion Consultants Limited for facilitating employment in the Gulf countries and in Europe, especially the UK. Similarly, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana have constituted government agencies for overseas employment.
Growth and nature of economic development in Punjab are also not favourable to employment. After enjoying highest growth rate among states in the pre-reform period; in the post-reform period, the economy’s average growth rate (5.36 %) between 2012 and 2024 is lower than 20 states and has adversely affected employment. In terms of nature of economic development, agriculture sector has remained the major driver. But agriculture is not a preferred sector of employment among the educated. Industry being small and medium in nature has hardly offering quality jobs to educated youth. Most of the unskilled and semiskilled workers are migrants. For skilled and managerial jobs, industry offers around ₹20,000 monthly salary, much below the aspirations of educated unemployed.
Moreover, job conditions are also not congenial. The service sector is operating at small and medium scale. This sector has not graduated to highly specialised services like artificial intelligence; information technology; Fintech services; cyber security; environmental services and more. Hence, the sector has not gainfully employed educated youth.
Low employability and curriculum are interrelated. Low employability is largely attributed to the curriculum and its delivery. Academic bodies involved in curriculum development are mainly managed by faculty and in the deliberations theoretical considerations dominate. Same is the case of delivery of curriculum.
(The writer, ex-Vice Chancellor of Punjabi University, Patiala, is chairman, Centre for Regional Development Studies, IDC, Chandigarh. Views expressed are personal)
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According to the report, the share of children (0-4 years) in Punjab is lower (6%) than in India (8%). Similarly, the share of the population in the age group of (0-14 years) in Punjab is lower (19.2%) than the national average (24%). However, the share of elderly people is higher (11.5%) than in India (9.7%).
Punjab not optimising benefits of working population
The incidence of unemployment suggests that Punjab is not optimising the benefits of its working population. According to the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) report-2025, the unemployment rate in Punjab is 5.3% against the national average of 3.1%. Unemployment is more pronounced among youth ( 17 %) whereas the national average is 9.9 %. Further, in Punjab, as per the PLFS quarterly bulletin January -March 2026, the rate of unemployment according to current weekly status (CWS) is also high (7.7%) against the national average of 5%.
Among youth, unemployment is as high as 20.2%. The national average is 15%. Unemployment is likely to increase further due to changes in immigration policies of the US, Canada and Australia particularly relating to international students.
Weak employment programmes are largely rooted in the paradigm shift in economic policy of the 1990’s whereby employment generation was left to market forces leading thereby to jobless growth. Punjab suffered more as the agriculture sector is the major employer. Due to rapid mechanisation, the employment elasticity in agriculture has become negative revealing that with the development of agriculture the employment opportunities shrank. The phenomenon of joblessness, however, has not received policy thrust of successive governments in Punjab. According to Punjab Rozgar portal, 22,90,256 candidates are registered as job seekers. However, for such a large number, only 19,460 government and 1,185 private jobs are available.
Private sector job potential needs to be harnessed properly
Private sector across the globe is the major employer. But Punjab hardly has any policy to harness the potential of private sector. Punjab also lacks policy for employment overseas. Southern states like Kerala,
