Government jobs in Kashmir have been the gold standard of success for generations. And among them, careers in medicine, engineering, and civil services are preferred as they offer a certain social prestige and lifelong security. But as is now becoming apparent, the job market is changing, and this traditional approach to earning livelihood no longer guarantees employment. This is obvious from the prevailing rampant unemployment in J&K where thousands of educated young people—including PhD holders—are struggling to find work.
There are several reasons for this: one is that the government jobs are limited. In fact, the government can only recruit a few hundred unemployed youth annually when there are lakhs who need employment. In the first quarter of 2024 alone, 3.52 lakh youth registered with the J&K Directorate of Employment, with 1.09 lakh of them graduates and postgraduates. There are thousands of others who have not registered with the government and so aren’t visible. The situation becomes challenging in the absence of alternative job options for the left-out youth. For one, the private sector in J&K, especially in Kashmir Valley, remains underdeveloped. And for another, rise of technology is also threatening to take over a substantial portion of jobs reserved for humans. In its Future of Jobs Report 2025, the World Economic Forum (WEF) has predicted that the new technology will displace 92 million human jobs by 2030. On a positive note, 170 million new jobs will be created, resulting in 78 million net new jobs.
This has created a tricky situation: In Kashmir, for instance, we have now fewer government jobs and a rudimentary private sector unable to absorb the multitude of the educated unemployed youth. Compounding the situation is the rise of Artificial Intelligence and the related technology taking over human jobs. This has created an urgent need for upskilling for not just the currently educated unemployed youth but also for those already in jobs.
That said, there are many jobs that are still outside the pale of technology. As one article published in this paper has highlighted, agriculture, and handicrafts have sustained Kashmir’s economy through centuries. With the use of new technology and sustainable farming techniques, agriculture can be turned around as a profitable venture. Similarly, reviving carpet weaving, pashmina production, and woodworking can create jobs while preserving Kashmir’s rich heritage. Ironically, these occupations haven’t appealed to our educated youth drawn to the allure of the secure government jobs. But this mindset has to change, if there has to be a sustainable solution to the problem of unemployment.
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