20250612 main pic: Studens of Officers IAS Academy

Students attend a class at Officers IAS Academy, a cram school that specializes in preparing young people for government exams, in Chennai, India, on May 28. Rather than the corporate path, civil service jobs are prized by many in India as offering career security, with openings attracting millions of applicants. (Photo by Suzu Takahashi)

Indian youth scramble for government jobs highlights Modi's growth challenge

As millions chase civil service work, private sector slows and self-employment grows

SAYAN CHAKRABORTY

June 14, 2025 06:00 JST

CHENNAI -- A few months ago, Arghya Paul was sitting pretty. From a modest upbringing as a farmer's son, he had studied hard, climbing the ladder to the kind of job many millions of Indians covet -- working for the government.

But life turned upside down for the 36-year-old teacher and about 26,000 of his peers at various public schools in the Indian state of West Bengal in April. The country's Supreme Court upheld a local court's decision to annul their appointments after revelations that some candidates who took tests for the teaching jobs in 2016 -- the same time as Paul did -- had paid bribes to have their scores raised.