A silent political killer

Unemployment can become big and yet remain undetected. Its impact can be a critical vote swing

Is unemployment going to be the silent political killer in this election? This must be our first question, as we limp back from heightened national security anxiety towards other regular concerns. Every available evidence points to this possibility. But as of now, it is just a possibility.

Let us begin with objective data. The State of Working India, a report on jobs and joblessness released in November 2018 by Centre for Sustainable Employment at the Azim Premji University pretty much summarised the existing knowledge on this subject. We are shifting from a chronic but invisible and politically manageable problem of under-employment