Youth hiring in India to grow by 11 pc by 2026, to add nearly 1.28 crore new jobs: Report

New Delhi, Jan 12 (LatestNewsX) Youth hiring in India is projected to grow by 11 per cent by 2026, generating approximately 1.28 crore new jobs, according to a report on Monday.

The report by NLB Services showed that IT services will account for around 30-40 per cent, manufacturing around 12 per cent, healthcare around 13 per cent, fintech around 20 per cent, logistics around 10.7 per cent, and green energy around 4 per cent of these roles.

“As we mark Youth Day on the lines of ‘Ignite the Self, Impact the World’, India stands at a pivotal inflection point where its demographic dividend can translate into sustained economic acceleration if matched with the right skilling investments,” said Sachin Alug, CEO, NLB Services.

“With over 65 per cent of India’s population below the age of 35 and an estimated 12 million youth set to enter the workforce by 2026, the urgency to build future-ready capabilities has never been higher,” he added.

The report noted that demand for high-impact roles such as AI/ML engineers, data scientists, cybersecurity specialists, cloud architects, digital product managers, and sustainability professionals is expected to outpace supply.

It also flagged a significant opportunity gap in AI-skilling programmes, even as workplaces increasingly prioritise AI fluency and advanced digital competencies.

Alug said that structured upskilling, skill-aligned recruitment, and outcome-based talent models will be central to ensuring India’s youth not only participate in, but actively power, the country’s next phase of economic transformation.

“The next phase of growth will be driven by skills across AI and machine learning, data science and analytics, cybersecurity, cloud and platform engineering, digital product management, automation, and green technology roles,” Alug said.

Currently, only 45 per cent of youth are considered job-ready for high-growth tech and digital roles.

“This gap presents a clear opportunity: targeted upskilling at scale could unlock productivity gains of around 21 per cent across knowledge-intensive sectors, with the potential to contribute up to 8 per cent to India’s GDP by 2026,” Alug noted.

The report suggested that inclusive participation remains an important factor in India’s workforce outcomes. Women currently account for 41.7 per cent of the formal workforce, and youth employability levels in tier-2 and tier-3 cities trail metro cities.

Further, expanding access to quality training infrastructure, increasing female workforce participation to 55 per cent by 2030, and integrating underrepresented groups could add an estimated 9.3 million skilled workers to the economy over the next 5 years, it said.

rvt/