Changing Youth in Rural India: Labour, Technology & Aspirations

Project description

This study examines the changing dynamics of labour, technology, and aspirations among the young in rural India. India accounts for approximately a fifth of the world’s young population, a majority of whom live in rural areas. At the same time, rural India continues to be characterised by inequality and deprivation, and most rural workers earn their livelihoods from agriculture or the informal sector. The slow growth of regular jobs and the stunted structural transformation of the workforce have been the main reasons. All these at a time when a rising proportion of India’s young enrol themselves in high schools and colleges, and there is growing penetration of technologies, especially mobile phones and the Internet, even in rural areas. Existing scholarship has primarily focused on the shift of the rural workforce from agriculture to manufacturing, overlooking how technological and socio-political changes are reshaping rural labour markets in contemporary India. This research seeks to address this gap by investigating how education, new technologies, and policy interventions interact with structural economic constraints and caste and gender divisions among the rural youth. It does so by combining secondary data analysis with fieldwork research in Tamil Nadu, a south Indian State well known for its progressive economic and social transformation. Despite faster economic growth compared to the rest of India, young people in this State face joblessness and the weight of oppressive social structures. Tapping the State’s potential in knowledge-driven economic activities requires targeted policy interventions.

Outcomes

The project will generate new insights into how rural youth in India navigate education, technology, and work in the context of jobless growth and persistent inequality. It will provide an evidence-based account of how demographic transition and digitalisation shape employment opportunities, highlighting the constraints of caste, class, and gender. By combining macro-level data with fieldwork in Tamil Nadu, the study will identify the barriers and possibilities for more inclusive rural labour markets, offering policy-relevant recommendations to harness youth potential for knowledge-driven growth.

Essential capabilities

Ability to conduct both quantitative data analysis and qualitative fieldwork

Desireable capabilities

Familiarity with rural labour markets, caste/gender issues, or policy analysis

Expected qualifications (Course/Degrees etc.)

Master’s degree in Economics, Development Studies, Sociology, Public Policy, or a related discipline