Amit Bishnoi
This year the teacher’s day in memory of our second President Sarvapalli Dr. Radhakrishnan was celebrated in unique style. Crores of jobless youths all over the country beat the plates at a definite time that 5.5 pm to awake the sleeping Modi government to be careful toward job front which has reached to all time low with no hope of any improvement because of the pro corporate economic policies of this government. Though the Congress has supported the movement not only its students and youth wings but even senior leaders joined the movement and beat the plate,but basically it was a people movement supported by political parties. The shameful situation is that our media specially TV channels completely boycotted the movement and no major channel except NDTV bothered to show any footage of this mass movement . Inn print media to it was not so widely covered as it should have been keeping in mind the gravity of situation. The grim situation at this front and the callousness of Modi government could well be understood from the fact that since last year it has stopped to make public the job data when it was found that the unemployment has touched all time low and was worst in last 50 years. According to NCRB report in 2019 more than 43000 unemployed youths, frustrated farmers and destroyed businessmen have committed suicide. Every government deptt. every public sector organization every business house is retrenching the employees when already employed people are being rendered jobless where is the question of new job for our youths. Majority of these youths has very cleverly been given the lolly pop of muscular nationalism and aggressive Hindutva and all their thinking capacity all their talents all their potential all their creativity and above all their concern for themselves for their family and future and their sense of responsibility towards nation building in an amicable social environment has been snatched away at the name of religion and nation.
Major employers of government top among them is railway is being privatized. Not only poor commuters will have to pay higher fare and payment for all other facilities including bedding etc will now be available on payment platform ticket which is now of Rs 5/- may go upto Rs. fifity . When railway is being privatized the announcement of railway board that it will fill 1.43 lakh vacancies by December this year seems to be a cruel joke secondly already more than 2.50 lakh vacancies in railway are already vacant so this announcement of railway board seems just an eye wash but let us hope the board will fulfill its promise.BSNL another major employer has already retrenched thousands of its employees and domicile sword is hanging on the head of another 20,000 employees of this PSU.The government is planning forced retirement of its employees who have completed either fifty years of age or thirty years in job. This is the cruelest rule any democratic government could make. It is such a stage in the life of a person when he /she has to fulfill some most important duties of his life mainly a dream to own a house marriage of daughter job/business for son etc. rendering him/her unemployed is worst cruelty. Actually Modi government is changing the entire employment policy it will not recruit rather it will seek employees from employment agencies these employees will not be responsibility of the government no labour law will be applicable for them no pension no PF no legal protection only hire and fire the whole concept of welfare state is being changed by Modi government and people specially weaker section of society will be at the mercy of elites have nots at the mercy of haves.
According to centre for monitoring Indian economy (CMIE)between the economic slowdown and the pandemic at its peak 121 million jobs were lost. These includes regular salaried jobs, casual jobs and self employment. Do the reality check yourself see around yourself and you will find how many youths are running from pillar to post for a job and how many have been rendered jobless due to retrenchment because of economic slowdown and steep fall in GDP. All the sectors of economy have shown shrinking tendency except agriculture and the credit goes to MGNREGA which PM has even mocked in parliament though it was termed as world’s best job providing and job guarantee scheme by International labour organization (ILO).
The economic situation is grim fall in our GDP -23.9% is worst among all the countries. We are at the verge of war with China, situation at Pakistan border has never been satisfactory if God forbid something untoward happened its economic impacts will be disastrous for our already destroyed economy. Our youths are restless they could soon take to the streets in more aggressive style their frustration may create unpredictable situation in the country. It is the time Mr. PM instead of feeding peacock in your garden do something to manage the economy and provide job to our restless youths.