Unemployment in India
Short Questions
1. What is unemployment?
Answer: Unemployment is when people aged 15-59 are willing and able to work but cannot find a job at the prevailing wage.
2. What is seasonal unemployment?
Answer: It occurs when people are jobless during the off-season, like farmers during non-crop months.
3. What is disguised unemployment?
Answer: It happens when more people work on a task than needed, with zero marginal productivity.
4. What is educated unemployment?
Answer: When educated people, like graduates, cannot find jobs matching their qualifications.
5. What causes frictional unemployment?
Answer: It is caused by temporary issues like machinery breakdown or raw material shortages.
6. What is cyclical unemployment?
Answer: It occurs due to economic downturns, like during a depression, reducing job opportunities.
7. What is the goal of MGNREGS?
Answer: To provide at least 100 days of guaranteed wage employment to rural households.
8. What is jobless growth?
Answer: When economic growth does not create enough jobs to absorb the growing labor force.
9. What is voluntary unemployment?
Answer: When a person is fit to work but chooses not to work.
10. What is the Start-up India Initiative?
Answer: A 2016 program to inspire and support young people to start new businesses.
Long Questions
1. What is the meaning of unemployment in economics?
Answer: In economics, unemployment refers to people aged 15-59 who are willing and able to work but cannot find jobs at the current wage rate. It is studied based on nature, working age, labor demand-supply, and wage rates. For example, a person working less than 14 hours a week is considered unemployed in India.
2. Explain seasonal unemployment in rural areas.
Answer: Seasonal unemployment happens in rural areas when workers, like farmers, are jobless during non-crop seasons. In India, agriculture depends on monsoons, leaving laborers unemployed for 5-7 months. This is also seen in industries like tourism and sugar factories.
3. What is disguised unemployment with an example?
Answer: Disguised unemployment occurs when more workers are employed than needed, with no increase in output. For example, if five workers produce 10 quintals of jowar, adding more workers does not increase production. It is common in Indian agriculture due to overpopulation.
4. What are the reasons for educated unemployment in India?
Answer: Educated unemployment happens due to a casual approach to education, mismatch between job opportunities and graduates, and preference for white-collar jobs. Lack of employable skills and awareness about career options also contribute to this issue.
5. What is technological unemployment in urban areas?
Answer: Technological unemployment occurs when new technology, like computers or robots, replaces workers in industries. For example, computerization in printing has led to job losses. It happens because workers lack training for modern technology.
6. How does population growth cause unemployment in India?
Answer: A high birth rate and low death rate have increased India’s population, leading to a large labor force. The economy cannot create enough jobs to absorb this growing workforce, resulting in widespread unemployment, especially in urban areas.
7. What are the economic effects of unemployment?
Answer: Unemployment wastes human resources, increases poverty, and creates income inequality. It makes implementing welfare schemes difficult and promotes the growth of the informal sector. It also raises the dependency ratio in society.
8. What is the Employment Guarantee Scheme (EGS)?
Answer: The EGS, started in Maharashtra in 1972, provides productive employment to rural people to reduce unemployment and poverty. It guarantees minimum job opportunities and was later adopted by other states due to its success.
9. How does the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana help reduce unemployment?
Answer: This 2016-2020 scheme encourages skill development among youth by offering monetary rewards for completing training programs. With a budget of ₹12,000 crores, it aims to make young people employable and reduce unemployment.
10. What is the role of rural industrialization in reducing unemployment?
Answer: Rural industrialization creates job opportunities in villages, reducing migration to urban areas. It promotes small-scale industries and alternative occupations, absorbing the rural labor force. This helps tackle seasonal and disguised unemployment effectively.
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