As technology advances, fear of future shock for India's workforce

A large chunk of it is unprepared for new skills as AI and machine learning become common

Does technology help create jobs? Economists throughout history have tried to settle the question. Adam Smith and other neoclassical liberals argued that technological advancements would not lead to unemployment and innovation would create new industries and opportunities. Karl Marx argued that while advancements increase labour productivity, they often exclude labour participation and make workers impoverished. 

 

When computers emerged in the mid-20th century, they sparked fears of mass unemployment and many predicted that automation would make human workers obsolete. Instead, computers spurred new industries and roles and transformed the nature of work. Today, the rise of artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics has revived historical concerns. 

 

India is expected to face a 38 per cent “skill disruption” due to AI between 2025 and 2030: The highest among BRICS nations, according to the World Economic Forum’s ‘Future of Jobs Report 2025’. Brazil (37 per cent), South Africa (36 per cent) and China (33 per cent) follow, marking the global impact of evolving technological demands. Russia was not taken for the analysis as data was unavailable. The report defines skill disruption as the rapid shift in required workforce skills, pushing employers and employees to rethink skilling needs. 

 

Adding to the challenge, India scores only 3 out of 7 on the ease of finding skilled employees in its labour market, meaning around 42 per cent of its workforce is prepared for new skills. Brazil and South Africa score 4 (around 57 per cent), while China leads with a score of 5 (71 per cent). The figures highlight the need for nations, especially India, to focus on reskilling and upskilling their workforce. 

 

India's projected fastest-growing job profiles will be for AI, machine learning (ML) and big data analytics, according to the report. 

 

Around 48 per cent of tasks or jobs in India are done by humans: The same as the global average. The report predicts the share in India to fall to 31 per cent by 2030, below the global average by two percentage points. Technology jobs would grow from 22 per cent at present to 34 per cent in 2030 in India, in sync with the global average. 

 

Internet access in India has improved over the years. Internet penetration was 52.4 per cent in 2024 and there were 752 million internet users that January, according to the 'Digital 2024: Global Overview Report' by DataReportal. But in percentage terms India was behind Russia (90.4 per cent internet penetration) and Brazil (86.6 per cent) in January 2024.   

 

“The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read or write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn,” said futurist Alvin Toffler and his wife Adelaide Farrell in 1970 in their co-authored book ‘Future Shock’. As India trains its workforce for new technologies, the sentence sums up its challenges.