Indian Supreme Court Attributes Youth Joblessness to Skills Mismatch and Underemployment

A recent Boston University graduate founded the Cockroach Janta Party after a Supreme Court justice compared unemployed young people to cockroaches during a May 15 hearing. The graduate posted a sarcastic question on X asking what would happen if all the cockroaches united, and the post gained traction within days.

The new party name plays on the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party. Organizers say the effort draws on frustration among educated but jobless young adults across India.

The founder plans to return to New Delhi and hold a public rally on June 6. Organizers say the effort taps into widespread frustration among educated but jobless young adults. A recent study cited in coverage shows 40 percent of Indians aged 15 to 25 are unemployed, while the rate for those aged 25 to 29 stands at 20 percent. Many of the unemployed hold university degrees.

India has recorded annual GDP growth near 7 percent over the past decade, yet youth unemployment has remained high. Employer surveys indicate more than half of graduates lack the skills required for the jobs they trained to perform. One-third of the labor force works fewer than 36 hours per week, adding to underemployment.

Fields such as medicine continue to face shortages of trained personnel even as many graduates remain idle. In 2018 a suggestion that unemployed youth sell fried snacks led some students to stage demonstrations by frying the snacks in public. Sustaining the current online movement into lasting political pressure faces obstacles.

India’s size, linguistic diversity, and daily economic demands complicate nationwide organizing. The episode has renewed attention to India’s demographic dividend argument. Policymakers have long claimed a large youth population would drive growth, yet analysts note that skills, health care, and job opportunities remain unevenly distributed across regions.