Discontent Among Unemployed Youth of J&K Reach to Alarming Proportions: Harsh Dev Singh, Chairman JKNPP

Jammu, 11th Oct. 2020: Expressing concern over the growing unemployment in the country and particularly in J&K, Mr. Harsh Dev Singh, Chairman-JKNPP & former Minister said that the simmering discontent amongst the unemployed educated youth had assumed alarming proportions. Through a serious of protests organized on regular basis, the unemployed and under-employed youth were expressing their anger against the BJP government which had failed to fulfill their genuine aspirations despite its tall slogans of youth empowerment, asserted Singh. Reminding the BJP of its loud pronouncements and lofty promises during elections of providing two crore jobs per year with job security for alteast one member of each family, Mr. Singh said that the educated youth was feeling cheated and betrayed. He said that the growing unrest amongst the younger generation was a warning signal for the BJP regime which needed to fulfill its promises to youth who voted heavily in its favour on the strength of its slogans. Mr. Singh made this statement during a protest dharna organized by the Panthers Party to support the unemployed youth under its slogan of *“Rozgar Ka Vaada Poora Karo” Abhiyan* in Jammu today. Dozens of educated youth including technically trained youth in sports, Health, and medicine took part in the protest. Amidst raising of slogans against BJP govt, the affected candidates set up vegetable stalls with several of them from unemployed Rehber-e-khel category polishing shoes on the occasion to project their pathetic plight. Several unemployed educated youths torched their degrees to show their resentment against govt.

 Speaking to media persons, Mr. Singh announced that the NPP’s Rozgar Abhiyan shall be taken to every nook and corner of J&K and seminars, dharnas and protests shall be organized at District, Tehsil, and Block Headquarters to awaken the government which he said, seemed to have abdicated its responsibility towards the younger generations. The issues of unemployed, underemployed, semi-employed, and self-employed would be vigorously highlighted and the BJP government made accountable and answerable for its election time promises made to the youth, said, Singh.

Expressing his indignation over the betrayal of educated youth by the BJP govt, Mr. Singh drew the attention of Lt Governor towards the plight of around 20,000 Pharmacists and Medical Assistants who were being denied recognition in respect of the courses completed by them after re-organization of the state and its conversion as UT. While the GoI had allowed registration and licensing of those with mere experience of medical practitioners without any formal qualification by virtue of recent notification, the candidates who had passed the Pharmacists courses under J&K Pharmacy Act were being refused such recognition on the pretext that the central pharmacy Act had come into operation in J&K. This was gross injustice with such trained youth whose diplomas were being rendered redundant for no fault of their, said Singh.

Pointing towards the repeated assurances of providing sports teachers in all Middle Schools of J&K by recruiting trained youth against the said posts, Mr. Singh said that the govt had once again fallen back on its promises causing disillusionment amongst the technically qualified youth. While the govt announced the filling up of 7300 posts under REK, it stopped short of the target by recruiting only 3000 candidates and keeping the remaining 4300 posts vacant despite the availability of trained manpower. Not only that those appointed as REKs were also not being given their due honorarium as UT employees and were being treated like disposable despite being highly qualified.

The NPP leader said that while the government should immediately advertise one lac posts for the absorption of youth in consonance with its oft parroted slogans, the issues of other underemployed youth needed to be addressed on priority. He called for early regularization of all daily rated workers of PHE, PWD, PDD, Forests, the temporary employees engaged as REKs, REZs, contractual lecturers/teachers, NHM and MGNREGA employees, Anganwari and Asha workers, CLTUs and Khidmat Centre Operators, SPOs, NYCs and NYVs, PETs, etc. The Party demanded the immediate reinstatement of terminated employees of the Health Department engaged under SRO-24 and SMAGRA Teachers engaged under RMSA. It sought the revival of Self Help Groups of Engineers whose disbanding had rendered around 15000 Engineers jobless.

Prominent among those who spoke on the occasion included Surinder Chouhan, Mohinder Singh, Rohit Dutt, Ankush Bandral, Ankesh Singh, Lal Dev, Sonali Sharma, Kajal Kotwal, Nisha Rajput, Manzoor Ahmed, Nikhil, Harikesh, Anil Verma, Sahil Verma, Parviz, Nirmal Kishore, Ravinder Jamwal, Rashpaul Singh, Gurdeep Singh Raju, Kirti Fangotra, Subash Sharma, Darshan Singh, Vijay Sharma, Sunil Kumar besides others.