79 yrs of work, ambition and making of modern India

India's job market has undergone five distinct phases over the past 79 years. The first phase, roughly from 1947 to the late 1980s, was characterized by job security, primarily through government service and agriculture. This era of stability has left an imprint on the current job market.

The second phase saw the government job as a social contract, with agriculture as the backbone of employment. However, it soon became clear that agriculture was vulnerable to the whims of monsoon and inherited family plots, offering little in the way of market-based security.

The third phase marked a shift towards globalisation and the emergence of the IT boom. Indian talent began to compete directly with talent from global markets, particularly in the technology sector. The IT boom changed the nature of India's job market, focusing on continuous learning and skill evolution, rather than static careers.

The fourth phase brought with it the challenge of a skills gap. Despite the rise in the IT sector, 88% of India's workforce is in low-competency occupations. The unemployment rate among young graduates is at 29.1%, compared to 3.4% among young people who are illiterate. The skills gap has become a defining fault line of this fifth phase of India's job market.

Today, security comes from whatever skill has been acquired or the next gig worth pursuing. As Akash Kumar, a former Google, Amazon, and Walmart executive, puts it, even premium white-collar jobs are being disrupted. Kumar expects workers to move towards gig work, freelancing, and smaller ventures built around niche skills, as companies automate tasks that once required larger teams.