Private sector needs to step up and match government efforts towards job creation: Anand Mahindra

The private sector in India needs to come on board and match the government’s efforts to create jobs and provide employment to the youth because in the absence of a collective effort, the country’s demographic dividend could turn into a demographic disaster, Mahindra Group Chairman Anand Mahindra said on Wednesday. In his reaction to the Union Budget 2024-25, he said it shows evidence of the government recognising the importance of economic growth coupled with job creation. “We are the envy of the world in terms of our GDP growth. We are the preferred investment destination in the world because of the confidence in our future,” Mahindra said in a post on social media platform X.

He added: “But the most important task before us is to ensure that this growth is now accompanied by rapid job growth.”

Mahindra noted that “for me, the most important thing about yesterday’s budget was the powerful evidence that the government recognizes this as its most important mission. And that skills that make young people employable are as important as employment.”

Mahindra said the plans announced by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman are promising. “But they need to be monitored closely to see if the incentives are working and if any tweaks/modifications are required,” he added.

Calling on the private sector to come on board, Mahindra said they “must step up to the plate and do their part by investing in jobs and employability”.

He warned that “if we do not all unite in this task, the demographic dividend will once again become a demographic catastrophe.”

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