Relief for govt as number of unemployed youth dips

Ambika Sharma

Tribune News Service

Solan, March 26

The state government, which has been facing flak for failing to provide adequate employment to the youth, has got a major relief. The latest survey of the Department of Economics and Statistics places the number of unemployed youth at 50 per cent less than the number registered in the various employment exchanges.

The unemployed people registered in the state were 8.89 lakh and about 1.5 lakh were added to the tally in the last few months after the state government introduced a scheme to extend a monthly skill development allowance of Rs 1,000 to the educated unemployed youth registered with employment exchanges.

The survey was conducted randomly on 8,840 people registered in various employment exchanges, which was one per cent of the total number.

The survey has come as a relief to the state government as the report points out that a large number of those registered comprised people who were either under-employed or vied for state government jobs and continued to renew their registrations even after being employed. A large number of housewives too were found registered, who had no will to take up a job but had been directed to do so by their families. Even employed youth who were on the lookout for better jobs were registered in the exchanges, confided an official on the condition of anonymity.

In a bid to establish the actual number of unemployed youth, officials were now contemplating to introduce a system of compulsory renewal of all registration by October 31 and a comprehensive form requiring details such as present status of employment and other such requirements.

This would help identify the number of unemployed youth and those looking for better avenues.

Principal Secretary, Labour and Employment, RD Dhiman said the state was seriously considering streamlining the system whereby the actual number of unemployed youth would be known as it would also help in devising policies for the unemployed.

The government was yet to study the impact of skill development allowance, being granted since 2013, in making youth employable. Thousands of youth had been availing it since the last about two years.