New Delhi, Mar 27: The Congress on Wednesday said Prime Minister Narendra Modi can keep trying to “distort, distract, and divert”, but youth unemployment is a defining issue for the country in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections and it has a concrete plan to deal with it.
The opposition party claimed that the country is sitting on a “ticking bomb” of joblessness with the youth bearing the brunt of the Modi government's “apathy”.
Citing the India Employment Report 2024 released by the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and the Institute of Human Development (IHD), Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge urged people to remember before voting that Prime Minister Narendra Modi promised to provide 20 crore jobs in 10 years but “snatched more than 12 crore jobs from the youth”.
“Our Youth is bearing the brunt of Modi government's pathetic apathy, as ever-rising Unemployment has destroyed their future. ILO & IHD Report conclusively says that the Unemployment problem is grim in India,” he said.
“They are conservative, we are sitting on a ‘ticking bomb' of joblessness!” Kharge said in a post on X.
“But the Modi government's Chief Economic Advisor protects the dear leader, by saying ‘government can't solve all social, economic problems such as unemployment',” he said.
Kharge said the ILO report states that 83 per cent of jobless Indians are youths and only 17.5 per cent of the youth in rural areas are engaged in regular work.
“Share of people employed in industry and manufacturing has remained the same since 2012 at 26% of the total workforce. The percentage of youth involved in economic activities decreased from 42% in 2012 to 37% by 2022,” he said, citing the report.
Therefore, compared to the Congress-led UPA government, fewer young people are involved in economic activities under the Modi dispensation due to an acute scarcity of jobs, Kharge said.
Compared to 2012, youth unemployment has tripled under the Modi government, he claimed.
“That is why the Congress has brought in ‘Yuva Nyay',” he said. Kharge listed the guarantees of the Congress under ‘Yuva Nyay', such as filling up nearly 30 lakh vacant central government posts.
He also highlighted the right to apprenticeship law for degree/diploma holders, which will guarantee them apprenticeship with an assistance of Rs 1 lakh per year.
“The Congress Party guarantees that we will put a full stop on paper leaks by bringing a new law and will also bring a new law for social security and working conditions in gig economy,” he said.
“A Fund will be created with an amount of Rs 5,000 Cr which will be distributed in all the districts of the country. Each district will get 10 Cr from the fund,” he added.
“Before you vote, do remember …! Modi ji promised 20 Crore Jobs in 10 Years, but snatched more than 12 crore jobs from the youth!” the Congress chief said.
