Why India lags behind in imparting skills to its workforce A vast number of young people in India lack the key skills needed to be employable, according to recent surveys. Upskilling the workforce could boost India's economy by hundreds of billions of dollars. Job seekers line up outside the venue of a job fair in Chinchwad in February 2019 India has one of the largest workforces in the world: With nearly 500 million people of working age, the domestic labor market is second only to China's and far bigger than those of the United States and the EU. India also has a much younger population, with an average age of 26.8 years. Tens of millions of students graduate from colleges across the country every year, entering the workforce.