People as Resource

"People as Resource is an effort to explain population as an asset for the economy rather than a liability. Population becomes human capital when there is investment made in the form of education, training and medical care. In fact, human capital is the stock of skill and productive knowledge embodied in them."

1.0Introduction

'People as Resource' is a way of referring to a country's working people in terms of their existing productive skills and abilities. Looking at the population from this productive aspect emphasises its ability to contribute to the creation of the Gross National Product. Like other resources population also is a resource - a 'human resource'. This is the positive side of a large population that is often overlooked when we look only at the negative side, considering only the problems of providing the population with food, education, and access to health facilities.

2.0Human capital formation

• When the existing 'human resource' is further developed by becoming more educated and healthier, we call it 'human capital formation' that adds to the productive power of the country just like 'physical capital formation'.
• Investment in human capital (through education, training, medical care) yields a return just like investment in physical capital. This can be seen directly in the form of higher incomes earned because of higher productivity of the more educated or the better trained persons, as well as the higher productivity of healthier people.
• Not only do the more educated and the healthier people gain through higher incomes, but society also gains in other indirect ways because the advantages of a more educated or a healthier population spread to those also who themselves were not directly educated or given health care.
• In fact, human capital is in one way superior to other resources like land and physical capital: human resource can make use of land and capital. Land and capital cannot become useful on its own.

3.0Large population - A liability or an asset

For many decades in India, a large population has been considered a liability rather than an asset. But a large population need not be a burden for the economy. It can be turned into a productive asset by investment in human capital (for example, by spending resources on education and health for all, training of industrial and agricultural workers in the use of modern technology, useful scientific research and so on).

4.0Virtuous and Vicious cycle

Investment in human resource (via education and medical care) can give high rates of return in future. This investment on people is the same as investment in land and capital. A child, too, with investments made on her education and health, can yield a high return in future in the form of higher earnings and greater contribution to the society. Educated parents are found to invest more heavily on the education of their child. This is because they have realised the importance of education for themselves. They are also conscious of proper nutrition and hygiene. They accordingly look after their children's needs for education at school and good health. A virtuous cycle is, thus, created in this case. In contrast, a vicious cycle may be created by disadvantaged parents, who themselves uneducated and lacking in hygiene, keep their children in a similarly disadvantaged state. Countries, like Japan, have invested in human resource. They did not have any natural resource. These countries are developed/rich. They import the natural resource needed in their country. How did they become rich/developed? They have invested on people, especially in the field of education and health. These people have made efficient use of other resources, like land and capital. Efficiency and the technology evolved by people have made these countries rich/ developed.

5.0Economic activities by men and women

The various activities have been classified into three main sectors i.e., primary, secondary, and tertiary. Primary sector includes agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry, fishing, poultry farming, mining, and quarrying. Manufacturing is included in the secondary sector.

Trade, transport, communication, banking, education, health, tourism, services, insurance etc. are included in the tertiary sector. The activities in this sector result in the production of goods and services.

These activities add value to the national income. These activities are called economic activities. Economic activities have two parts: (i) Market activities involve remuneration to anyone who performs i.e., activity performed for pay or profit. These include production of goods or services including government service. (ii) Non-market activities are the production for self-consumption. These can be consumption and processing of primary product and own account production of fixed assets.

Due to historical and cultural reasons there is a division of labour between men and women

Women generally look after domestic chores and men work in the fields. Women are not paid for their service delivered in the family. The household work done by women is not recognised in the National Income.

Women are paid for their work when they enter the labour market. Their earning like that of their male counterpart is determined based on education and skill.

A majority of women have meagre education and low skill formation. Women are paid low compared to men. Most women work where job security is not there. Various activities relating to legal protection is meagre. Employment in this sector is characterised by irregular and low income. In this sector there is an absence of basic facilities like maternity leave, childcare, and other social security systems.

However, women with high education and skill formation are paid at par with the men. Among the organised sector, teaching and medicine attract them the most. Some women have entered administrative and other services including job, that need high levels of scientific and technological competence.

6.0Quality of Population

The quality of population depends upon the literacy rate, health of a person indicated by life expectancy and skill formation acquired by the people of the country. The quality of the population ultimately decides the growth rate of the country. Illiterate and unhealthy population are a liability for the economy. Literate and healthy population are an asset.

(a) Education

Education helps individual to make better use of the economic opportunities available before him. Education and skill are the major determinants of the earning of any individual in the market. Education opens new horizon, provides new aspiration, and develops values of life for an individual. Education contributes towards the growth of society also. It enhances the national income, cultural richness and increases the efficiency of governance.

Steps taken for promotion of Education

Number of Institutions of Higher Education, Enrolment and Faculty

(b) Health

The health of a person helps him to realise his/her potential and the ability to fight illness. $\mathrm{He}/$ she will not be able to maximise his/her output to the overall; Indeed, health is an indispensable basis for realising one's well-being. Henceforth, improvement in the health status of the population has been the priority of the country. Our national policy, too, aims at improving the accessibility of healthcare, family welfare and nutritional service with a special focus on the underprivileged segment of the population. Over the last five decades, India has built a vast health infrastructure and has also developed the manpower required at primary, secondary and tertiary sector in government, as well as, in the private sector.

Outcome

There are many places in India which do not have even these basic facilities. There are only 529 medical colleges in the country and 313 dental colleges. Just 4 states like Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra have, large number of medical colleges.

Health infrastructure over the years

SC: Sub centre, PHC: Primary Health Centre, CHC: Community Health Centre. ANM: Auxiliary Nurse Midwifery, RN&RM: Registered Nurses & Registered Midwives, LHV: Lady Health Visitors.

Source: National Health Policy, 2013, 2014, 2015, (National Health Profile, 2016, 2017, 2018, Central Bureau of Health Intelligence, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.)

7.0Unemployment

The work force population includes people from 15 year to 59 year. In case of India, we have unemployment in rural and urban areas. However, the nature of unemployment differs in rural and urban areas. In case of rural areas, there is seasonal and disguised unemployment. Urban areas have mostly educated unemployment. Seasonal unemployment happens when people are not able to find jobs during some months of the year. People dependent upon agriculture usually face such kind of problem. There are certain busy seasons when sowing, harvesting, weeding, and threshing is done. Certain months do not provide much work to the people dependant on agriculture.

In case of disguised unemployment people appear to be employed. They have agricultural plot where they find work. This usually happens among family members engaged in agricultural activity. The work requires the service of five people but engages eight people. Three people are extra. These three people also work in the same plot as the others. The contribution made by the three extra people does not add to the contribution made by the five people. If three people are removed the productivity of the field will not decline. The field requires the service of five people, and the three extra people are disguised unemployed. In case of urban areas educated unemployment has become a common phenomenon. Many youths with matriculation, graduation and post-graduation degrees are not able to find job. A study showed that unemployment of graduate and post-graduate has increased faster than among matriculates. A paradoxical manpower situation is witnessed as surplus of manpower in certain categories coexist with shortage of manpower in others. There is unemployment among technically qualified person on one hand, while there is a dearth of technical skills required for economic growth.

Drawbacks of Educated Unemployment

A paradoxical manpower situation is witnessed as surplus of manpower in certain categories coexist with shortage of manpower in others. There is unemployment among technically qualified person on one hand, while there is a dearth of technical skills required for economic growth.

Drawbacks of Unemployment

Unemployment leads to wastage of manpower resource. People who are an asset for the economy turn into a liability. There is a feeling of hopelessness and despair among the youth. People do not have enough money to support their family. Inability of educated people who are willing to work to find gainful employment implies a great social waste.

Unemployment tends to increase economic overload. The dependence of the unemployed on the working population increases. The quality of life of an individual as well as of society is adversely affected. When a family has to live on a bare subsistence level there is a general decline in its health status and rising withdrawal from the school system.

Hence, unemployment has detrimental impact on the overall growth of an economy. Increase in unemployment is an indicator of a depressed economy. It also wastes the resource, which could have been gainfully employed. If people cannot be used as a resource, they naturally appear as a liability to the economy. In case of India, statistically, the unemployment rate is low. A large number of people represented with low income and productivity are counted as employed. They appear to work throughout the year but in terms of their potential and income, it is not adequate for them. The work that they are pursuing seems forced upon them. They may therefore want other work of their choice. Poor people cannot afford to sit idle. They tend to engage in any activity irrespective of its earning potential. Their earning keeps them on a bare subsistence level.

The employment scenario in the three sectors

Agriculture is the most labour absorbing sector of the economy. In recent years, there has been a decline in the dependence of population on agriculture partly because of disguised unemployment discussed earlier. Some of the surplus labour in agriculture has moved to either the secondary or the tertiary sector. In the secondary sector, small scale manufacturing is the most labour- absorbing. In case of the tertiary sector, various new services are now appearing like biotechnology, information technology and so, on.

8.0MIND MAP