Overqualified, jobless synonyms in state

Rajmeet Singh

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, January 19

The blaring loudspeaker used for election campaigning in his neighborhood fails to enthuse Narinder Gautam (23) of Manakpur Sharif village in Kurali.

The part-time motivator — engaged by the Water Supply and Sanitation Department to encourage villagers against open defecation by constructing government-funded toilets — seems more worried about meeting his target to cover all households, lest his paltry honorarium (around Rs 3,000 per month) is not withheld.

Luck was not on his side when this B.Tech graduate appeared for the constable recruitment test last year. “I cleared the physical test, but could not make it in the final selections,” he rues.

“After my father paid nearly Rs 3 lakh from his meagre resources as the fee for my degree at a private college, I am unable to find a respectable job. At times, I don’t have money to buy petrol for my bike that’s needed to go from one village to another,” says a disappointed Narinder.

A few kilometers away, an engineer in electronics and communication, Lovkesh Gupta (22), works as a commission agent – earning up to Rs 5,000 a month for opening zero-balance accounts for a nationalised bank. He also does other unskilled jobs to help his father run the household.

Narinder and Lovkesh are not alone. Many are unable to find jobs commensurate with their educational levels because they are “overqualified”. It’s reflection of the state of affairs as the current unemployment rate in Punjab stands at 6.1 per cent, as per the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy.

The Punjab Congress claims that the number of unemployed in the state is as high as 75 lakh. Its spokesman Sunil Jakhar accuses the SAD-BJP government of making a false promise of giving more than 1.13 lakh jobs. The process has been completed only in the case of 2,600 posts, he adds. 

The SAD-BJP alliance claims that against 24,683 jobs provided by the Congress between 2002 and 2007, the coalition government generated 2.28 lakh jobs in the past decade. Of these, the process to recruit 1.13 lakh people is underway. However, thousands of teachers, nurses, linemen, and other qualified persons and MNREGA workers are staging dharnas.

Last year, 7 lakh youths had applied for 7,416 posts of constable. Among them, 7,000 had a Master’s degree.

Also in 2016, there were 84,000 applicants for 2,664 clerical posts. Engineers and hundreds of postgraduates were among the applicants. 

Official statistics reveal that there are 3.66 lakh educated unemployed youths. Will they vent their anger against the government or again be taken in by poll promises? The poll result on March 11 will answer this question.