CHANDIGARH: Senior Congress leader Partap Singh Bajwa on Friday accused the Aam Aadmi Party-led Punjab government of disregarding the Punjabi youth in government jobs.
The Qadian legislator accused Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann of deceiving the youth of Punjab by allegedly offering jobs to non-Punjabis and jeopardising their future.
"Is this the AAP government’s strategy to tackle unemployment in Punjab? Under such circumstances, why shouldn’t Punjabi youth consider migrating abroad for a more promising future? The chief minister should clarify if reversing migration and preventing brain drain from Punjab are part of his government’s agenda,” he added.
Bajwa, the leader of opposition in Punjab assembly, said out of the recently recruited seven sub-inspectors in the Punjab Police, only one belonged to Punjab. “Six of them belonged to Haryana. CM Mann would formally give them the letters related to their recruitment on September 9,” he added.
"Last year, the AAP government had hired 50% of veterinary inspectors from Haryana and Rajasthan. Of 68 veterinary inspectors recruited in 2022, 34 were from other states — 24 from Haryana and 10 from Rajasthan. The Punjab Congress raised the issue at that time, but the AAP government apparently turned a blind eye towards the needs of the Punjabi youth,” Bajwa said.
Accusing the government of continuing its anti-Punjab stance, Bajwa said the government gave at least 134 of a total of 644 positions in the animal husbandry department to non-Punjabis.
“Punjab is grappling with a high rate of unemployment. What is more alarming is that the unemployment rate among the highly educated youth is quite high. Therefore, to safeguard the interest of the Punjabi youth, the AAP government must make Punjab domicile and Punjabi language up to Class X mandatory for applying for government jobs in the state,” the Congress leader said.
