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Sangma moots training as anti-dote to unemployment

Former Lok Sabha speaker and senior Congress leader P A Sangma has stressed on the need for a comprehensive strategy to devise skill-oriented specialised training in various areas to arrest the burgeoning problem of unemployment in the country.

Delivering the keynote address at a workshop on Empowerment of Youth through Sustained Employment and Self-Employment -- Blueprint 2000 and Beyond, organised by the Mumbai Pradesh Youth Congress, the former Union minister said that keeping pace with the rapid growth in the science and technology sector, specialised jobs will be generated and for this special skill-oriented training is a must.

He said while the population is increasing at the rate of 2.1 per cent, the workforce in the country increases by 2.5 per cent. The population explosion in the country and the unemployment rate have stalled several schemes, but now it is time to devise long-term methods to arrest both the problems and for this mass-awareness will play an important role, he felt.

Sangma said that it is very unfortunate that among the around 960 million population, only 35 per cent comprises the workforce, while the rest are dependents. Among the 315 million-odd workforce in the country, only 52 million are educated, and among the educated people only 1.5 people comprise the doctors, technocrats, engineers and scientists, he revealed quoting figures of the Planning Commission and National Sample Survey.

The former Lok Sabha speaker said that unemployment is also witnessed among uneducated youth, which is around seven per cent. The only solution to all these problems is initiating special courses apart form the general curriculum.

He said earlier the target for full employment was year 2002. But now we are talking about near full employment by the year 2011, which will bear the population of around 1,114 million. To achieve near full employment by the year 2011, with such a huge population, a 8-9 per cent GDP growth is a must and sustained efforts need to be made for that.

Sangma further said in spite of the efforts made by former finance minister Manmohan Singh, and with the opening up of the economy and liberalisation policy, during the Eighth Plan Period only a mere 27 million jobs could be generated. Criticising the present Bharatiya Janata Party-led coalition government, he said, ''I don't know where is the Ninth Plan. The present state of affairs will make things worse, if elaborate steps are not taken at this juncture.''

Mumbai Regional Congress Committee chief Murli S Deora Said, ''Ever since we (Congress) went out of office, 200,000 jobs were lost because of the policies of various governments. He said that awareness among the youth needs to be generated and such workshops will guide the future.''

The workshop is a brainchild of Indian Youth Congress president Manish Tiwari. The Youth Congress will organise five other such workshops in different regions and then a memorandum will be submitted to the prime minister.

Among those who were present included eminent industrialist S P Godrej, Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee general secretary Kripashankar Singh, Mumbai Pradesh Youth Congress president Charan Singh Sapra, Maharashtra Pradesh Youth Congress president Anees Ahmed and Mumbai Regional Congress Committee general secretary Virendra Bakshi.

UNI