Dr. Tialiba Mokokchung
There are many threats to Naga society out of which unemployment is perhaps the greatest threat for this generation. Every year many youths graduate from different institutions, but the job opportunities are not proportionate with the number of the graduates leaving many youths unemployed. It affects their financial status, their hope and aspirations. It also loses their self-esteem because an individual’s job defines who he or she is in the society. Some become frustrated and embarrassed which even affects their mental health. It leads to depression, racking everything attached to the individual’s life, even to the extent of suicidal tendency.Looking at the scenario of Nagaland, 11765 candidates for 74 NPSC Post will take 159 years for all the Candidates to get Job at 74 posts per year. Now every year about 10 thousand new graduates(inclusive of theologian) will be added upon 11765. If this trend continues within a period of 10 years, a generation will be wiped out by unemployment. But on the other side of the coin, there are means to challenge this threat of our generation.
If a beggar is provided enough food daily, he or she will stay beggar for the rest of his or her life, unless it is worked out. No doubt, everyone have the right to seek a comfortable life. But he or she should be able first andthen follows comfort.To be able, we need to come out of the comfort zone and search for ways and means apart from government jobs. Not everyone is fortunate enough to hit the jack pot; therefore not everyone should stick only for white collar job. With an unemployment rate exceeding among the youths of Nagas, entrepreneurship should play a vital role in creating self-employment. Along with the entrepreneurship, private sector should also be familiar to the youths.
The problem of unemployment can be made less a burden if every Naga look into the possibility towards private sector. For instant, a Naga doctor have decided to employ only Nagas in his private clinic so that at least some of the youths will be employed in some capacity(he is not against non-locals rather he is happy to learn lot of constructive lessons for them andknow thatthey can survive in any corner of the earth, unlike us Nagas for now in general).Bigger role towards this private sector can be played by the church (like other religion), the Naga political groups (unless they still believe that war is the only way to solution of Naga problem in this 21st century), and the few rich Nagas from every corner of Nagaland. By such ways and means hundreds of these young unemployed will be employed. It will provide them the opportunity in contributing towards the growth of the Naga economy and a responsible citizen instead of sitting and waiting for government job. Even in terms of choosing educational carrier, it is high time to adopt job oriented education both formal and non-formal, rather than following the colonial aristocratic education system. There can be no better timethan now to break the status quo for this generation of youngsters. If not, we should ready to face extinction!
