Despite a high literacy rate of 86.9% and growing numbers of college graduates, the Andaman and Nicobar Islands are battling a severe employment crisis. Official data shows that one in three graduates is jobless, with youth unemployment among the highest in the country, particularly in urban areas like Sri Vijaya Puram.
Katchal, June 1: Justina, a young woman from the remote village of Upper Katchal in the Nicobar district, has secured a job at Sparsh Hospitals in Bengaluru after completing six months of training under the Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Grameen Kaushalya Yojana (DDU-GKY). Her journey, from one of the most isolated regions in the country to a major metropolitan hospital, is being seen by local officials as a rare but promising example of successful rural skilling and placement.
The turning point came when a mobilisation camp conducted by the Community Development Block Office in Nancowry introduced her to the DDU-GKY programme. She enrolled in the General Duty Assistant, Advanced course at the Center for Unemployed Youth Development Trust (CUYDT) Skill Development Institute in Namakkal, Tamil Nadu.
Over the next six months, Justina trained in essential clinical skills including patient care, hygiene, administering injections, and monitoring blood pressure and sugar levels. After completing the programme, she was placed in a healthcare facility, where her ability to adapt quickly to real-world clinical settings earned her a promotion to Sparsh Hospitals, a recognised healthcare chain in Bengaluru.
According to programme coordinators, Justina’s advancement highlights the importance of structured post-training placements. “She picked up critical skills during her on-the-job training phase, which made her suitable for a hospital like Sparsh,” said one official overseeing DDU-GKY implementation in the region.
Now employed in Bengaluru, Justina has volunteered to support future mobilisation efforts in her home region. She is currently participating in village-level awareness campaigns to encourage other youth, especially women, to pursue vocational training and look beyond local employment limitations.
Youth Education Surges, But Joblessness Deepens
Her success comes at a time when the Andaman and Nicobar Islands are grappling with a growing unemployment crisis, especially among educated youth. According to the latest 2023–24 Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS), one in every three graduates in the islands is jobless, with a graduate unemployment rate of 33.4 percent, over two and a half times the national average of 13 percent.
Youth aged 15 to 29 are particularly affected, with unemployment among them standing at 36.2 percent, one of the highest figures recorded in any Indian territory. This is despite a relatively high literacy rate of 86.9 percent and rising levels of higher education enrolment. The mismatch between education levels and labour market absorption is stark: while higher secondary pass-outs face 18.6 percent unemployment, even postgraduates are experiencing a 13.4 percent jobless rate. In contrast, the unemployment rate among the non-literate population is just 2.6 percent.
Urban areas have been especially hard-hit. The unemployment rate in towns and cities stands at 14.2 percent, compared to 9.1 percent in rural parts of the islands. Sri Vijaya Puram, the administrative capital, exemplifies this urban stress. Its economy depends heavily on seasonal tourism, a limited public sector, and a narrow service economy, leaving many educated youth underemployed or stuck in informal work.
In this context, officials say that Justina’s case offers a glimpse of what targeted, placement-linked programmes can achieve. “It’s a reminder that employment schemes like DDU-GKY can be more than policy paperwork, they can deliver real outcomes, especially when supported by community mobilisation and industry alignment,” a senior rural development official said.
