REWRITING THE BOOK OF JOBS

India’s biggest worry for 2026 is finding jobs for fresh graduates. Given the slowness in hiring by both public and private sectors, should we rethink the definition of work?

- 

AS the new calendar year begins, let me get the rhetoric going witha question. What’s the biggest challenge India faces today? Is the news that we see every day defining it?

Or must we look beyond, into what we don’t see? Is it the challenge from a fast-souring relationship with Bangladesh, an already-soured relationship with Pakistan, or is it the one that ferments slowly in a large pot with China and its geopolitical intent? Is it the fast depreciating relationship between the rupee and the dollar? Is it that long, unresolved and contentious issue of tariffs between the US and India that’s been troubling us for a while now? Well, this is what we see.

And what is it that we don’t see enough of? I believe there is a big one. We hear of it now and then, and we push it under the carpet of comfort. The big four-letter issue in our midst today is jobs. The lack of enough jobs for a whole nation of hungry and aspirational job seekers. An entire country of educated people, well nigh the size of one of our bigger cities, are on the daily active lookout for jobs that seem to be elusive, if not entirely missing. That's the volume dimension. Add to it the fact that all of them are looking for a full day’s work. That’s depth of work. And every one of them is looking for work that matches what they bring to the table as a competency. In the mismatch of these many dimensions lies the gory story of missing jobs.