Quoting the World Economic Forum’s ‘The Future of Jobs Report 2025’, the Union Minister for Labour & Employment and Youth Affairs & Sports, Dr. Mansukh Mandaviya stated that India’s unemployment rate is 2%, which is the lowest among the G20 nations. He highlighted how employment generation has taken place across sectors in tandem with India’s rapid economic growth, and underlined the enabling government schemes that have contributed towards the same.

The Union Minister was addressing the gathering in New Delhi today at the signing of Memorandums of Understanding (MoU) between Ministry of Labour & Employment and ‘Mentor Together’ and ‘Quikr’ for enhancing employment opportunities as well as youth employability on the National Career Service (NCS) Portal. The MoU was signed in the presence of Union Minister for Labour & Employment, Dr. Mansukh Mandaviya and Union Minister of State for Labour & Employment, Sushri Shobha Karandlaje.

In his address, Dr. Mandaviya said, “The National Career Service (NCS) platform, with nearly 52 lakh registered employers, 5.79 crore job seekers and over 7.22 crore vacancies mobilized, is now evolving to offer not just job listings, but as a one-stop solution for all employment-related services. Currently, there are over 44 lakh active vacancies on the portal. Over the past year, the Ministry has signed MoUs with ten key organisations, including Amazon and Swiggy. These partnerships have already mobilized nearly five lakh vacancies.”

Highlighting the Government’s renewed focus on youth, Dr. Mandaviya recalled that, at the very start of its third term, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced a package of five flagship schemes with a total budget of ₹2 lakh crore to support employment, skilling, and opportunities for 4.1 crore youth. A key highlight of this package is the Pradhan Mantri Viksit Bharat Rozgar Yojana (PM-VBRY), with an allocation of ₹99,446 crore, aimed at incentivising the creation of over 3.5 crore jobs in two years, of which 1.92 crore will benefit first-time entrants to the workforce.

The Minister further underscored the importance of employment creation through the growth of services, manufacturing, and agriculture, noting that the Government has launched transformative schemes such as MUDRA and PM SVANidhi to promote self-employment and entrepreneurship.

Welcoming the collaboration between the Ministry and the two organisations, Dr. Mandaviya said that these partnerships would make suitable employment opportunities as well as structured mentoring available to job-seekers, particularly in light of the Pradhan Mantri Viksit Bharat Rozgar Yojana coming into effect in August this year. These collaborations, in turn, will benefit not only the youth, but the nation at large, he added. “It will ensure that the future of this country, and of its youth, is bright,” he stated.

Union Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Sushri Shobha Karandlaje noted that NCS has emerged as India’s premier platform for digital employment facilitation, offering job matching, counselling, and skilling at one place. “This partnership will not only facilitate our young people in securing employment, but also make the right kind of handholding available to them,” she said.

The partnership with Mentor Together is expected to reach two lakh youth in its first year, including one lakh from NCS and one lakh Pradhan Mantri Viksit Bharat Rozgar Yojana entrants, delivering personalized career mentoring with city- and district-level outreach, so that no jobseeker is left behind. It will also enable first-time job seekers, particularly those from underserved backgrounds, to access personalized guidance from over 24,000 trained professionals.

The MoU renewal with Quikr aims to further strengthen the employment ecosystem by integrating over 1,200 daily job listings across 1200 plus cities from Quikr Jobs into the NCS portal. This collaboration will expand real-time access to job opportunities for millions of seekers, especially from rural and underserved regions.

The MoU with Mentor Together and Quikr is envisioned to add another dimension to, and strengthen the Ministry’s vision of, bridging the gap between job seekers and private sector employment. Together, these partnerships reflect a future-ready employment model—one that is digital, inclusive, and dignified.

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Rini Choudhury/Anjelina Alexander