Massive job losses reveal India is failing to reap its demographic dividend

Current Affairs

The recent shedding of over 350,000 jobs in its automobile sector--and thousands elsewhere--is an indicator of the economic and social hurdles that jeopardise India’s demographic dividend, the growth opportunity afforded by the world’s second largest working-age population of 688 million people.
With unemployment at a 45-year high, poor health--42 infants per 1,000 still die before turning one--and low levels of education--an average person has attended school for 6.3 years--India’s demographic dividend is at risk, according to an IndiaSpend analysis of data from the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and the Indian government, and research from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).
India needs state specific policies--good health and education systems, with more women entering the workforce in young states, and policies to attract migrants and elderly care systems in ageing states. India will also need to reduce caste and urban-rural inequality, especially in access to reproductive care, health, education and jobs.
As its working population is larger than the population of dependents, “India, theoretically, could have a golden period in the decade of 2020 to 2040 (and continuing later, though with decreasing results)...but it could happen only if the right policies and programmes are put in place right now,” according to a 2018 paper by the UNFPA.
However, our research shows, states vary widely in the education, skill development and healthcare facilities they are able to provide, leading to varying employability outcomes.

 As a result, states need policies specific to their unique challenges, which are determined, in part, by the stage of demographic transition they are in...Read More

Credit Suisse to expand in-house workforce in India with new Pune facility

The Credit Suisse logo is seen at the headquarters in downtown Milan, Italy, March 9, 2016. REUTERS/Stefano Rellandini/File Photo

Companies News

Global financial service provider Credit Suisse seeks to change Indian operations from service delivery centres to technology leadership centres with the launch of their smart facility in Pune. Credit Suisse announced its expansion to a new, smart working facility in the 44-acre EON Free Zone campus within the Special Economic Zone in Kharadi, Pune this week, as part of its strategy to establish India as a centre for technology innovation for the bank globally.

“We're giving more accountability to the teams here so that increasingly the decision makers for many IT services and solutions that we deliver to the bank globally will be based in India. In addition, we partner with top academic institutions such as COEP in Pune and BITS Pilani among others to develop future local IT talent with domain-specific skills," said Burns. However, a primary focus will still remain on lateral hiring and experienced talent to drive these operations, said the management.

Credit Suisse has approximately 14,000 staff in India, which includes a mix of in-house employees and vendors, across multiple centres, primarily in Pune and Mumbai, the majority of which provide various corporate function services with a focus on technology to the bank globally. Of the total staff, approximately 5,000 are in-house employees, of which around one-third are in IT roles.

"Our investment in the EON II facility highlights our continued commitment to India and our vision of establishing the country – and particularly Pune and Maharashtra – as a premier technological hub supporting our ability to serve the corporate and personal needs of our clients across our businesses globally," said Mihir Doshi, Chief Executive Officer, Credit Suisse India.


 The state-of-the-art office, called EON II, will co-exist with the present workspace in EON I. From EON II, teams will lead the development and roll-out of cutting-edge technology and innovative methodologies, such as Agile, Cloud Computing, Machine Learning and Robotics, to support Credit Suisse’s global business operations...Read More