India’s demographic profile has long been presented as an economic advantage. With a younger population than most major economies, the country was expected to enjoy decades of growth powered by an expanding workforce. Yet demographics alone do not create prosperity. People do. And increasingly, there are signs that India’s greatest asset risks becoming one of its greatest policy failures. The problem is not simply unemployment. It is the widening gap between aspiration and opportunity. Millions of young Indians have done what successive governments, educators and families asked of them.

They stayed in school longer, acquired degrees, developed technical skills and prepared for competitive examinations. What many have encountered instead is an economy that struggles to create enough quality jobs and institutions that often appear unable to keep pace with the expectations they themselves helped create. India’s economic growth story remains impressive on paper. The country is among the world’s fastest-growing major economies, attracting global investment and positioning itself as a manufacturing and technology hub. Yet growth statistics conceal an uncomfortable reality. A significant share of........

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