AA Edit | Modi's job creation thrust on war footing welcome

In one single day, yet again, the Prime Minister unleashed a plethora of job offers, providing direct appointment letters to 51,000 youth across the country, this time filling vacancies in paramilitary positions, terming the new recruits Amrit Rakshaks for a posse of responsibilities that they would be handling.

This represents the continuation of a thrust, now on a war footing, in an election year, in which several surveys have shown price rise and joblessness as two of the biggest economic and social concerns for the country’s citizens. They are also issues which the united Opposition is seemingly resolved to make its focal point in its campaign against the BJP both in upcoming state elections as well as the Lok Sabha polls set for next year.

Politics aside, any news of recruitment of youth and creation of new jobs, whether in the public sector or the private, is good news, and can only be welcomed. Political motivation does not detract in any way from the good work done by any government.

The Rozgar Melas, which the Opposition parties dubbed an “electoral stunt”, have actually been highly energising events. To the unemployed they present great hope. In India, despite the rise of the private and corporate sectors, including start-ups, government jobs still hold a strong charm for a large number of people. The Opposition comment, therefore, was in poor taste and hurts the sensibilities and sensitivities of the people of India.

The job mela held on Monday was the eighth in the series and the fair is being organised in an increasingly large number of locations spread across most states. The eighth edition of the Rozgar Mela took place across 45 locations.

In his address to the successfully recruited candidates, Prime Minister Narendra Modi emphasised several welcome changes made to the recruitment process for the paramilitary forces, which come with greater avenues for the youth. The streamlining of the recruitment process, with reduced timelines for making the offer, would enthuse many.

In a new-age policy of establishing greater accountability on jobs and unemployment, Mr Modi also gave a report to the country on the economy, highlighting the automobile, pharmaceutical, tourism and food processing sectors as the fastest growing in terms of employing people and creating new jobs.

Unlike the United States, India has historically never maintained the best practice of the government having to make frequent assessments and public declarations of new jobs created as well as current levels of unemployment. Hence by doing so, Mr Modi has started a new trend which will hopefully only be strengthened and formalised more strongly in days to come.

While Mr Modi spoke of the rising Indian economy and reiterated his guarantee that India would soon be amongst the top three economies in the world in coming years (it is currently at fifth position), and outlined how it would surpass the size of $5 trillion, it is time for India, too, to make full employment a goal for the future.

Mr Modi also underscored the importance of linkages between schemes, to wit, how the Jan Dhan Yojana, which was launched as a mass inclusion move for people, has now played a key role in creating new jobs. Make in India, too, has started making a dent in the unemployment figures. Most importantly, Mr Modi rightly identified tourism as one of the biggest employers of the future, with a potential to create nearly 14 crore new jobs.