Without upskilling, AI may put people out of jobs for long: Economic Survey 2025

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. The Economic Survey 2024-25 cautioned that the transition of India's workforce into the artificial intelligence era has to be smooth to prevent damage and potential unemployment.

This is because if transitions are not carefully managed, workers can experience long-lasting unemployment, with little prospect of catching up to market demands in the long run. “India's workforce in low-skill and low-value-added services remains vulnerable to AI.

Robust enabling institutions are essential to help transition workers to medium- and high-skilled jobs, where AI can augment their efforts rather than replace them," the Survey said. "As new auxiliary tasks and sectors emerge from the widespread adoption of technology, enabling institutions facilitate the smooth transition of the workforce to these new jobs, reducing the damage to worker income and preventing loss employability," it added.

However, the Survey cautioned that AI is still a nascent innovation, leaving much scope for interpretation, and thus, proportionate upskilling. “If one were to look at these trends and the value generation expected from investments, it would appear as if the ‘AI revolution’ is here and labour is soon going to be a thing of the past.

Unease about what AI entails for workers and what it means for humanity as a whole has become part of daily discussions… Since there are many unknowns associated with AI at this point, looking at the present through the lens of previous technological revolutions may provide some insights into the way forward," the Survey noted. The Survey also called for a tripartite compact between the government, private sector and academia to ensure that AI-driven productivity gains are widely