The Rajiv Gandhi Panchayati Raj Organisation of the Uttarakhand Pradesh Congress has launched the ‘Kaam Mango Abhiyan’ to raise employment-related issues affecting young people across the state.
A meeting of the organisation was held at the Pradesh Congress Committee office in Dehradun. It was chaired by state president Lalit Farswan, while national general secretary and Uttarakhand in-charge Deepak Rathore was also present.
The meeting focused on rising unemployment, migration of young people from rural areas and the lack of adequate employment opportunities at the local level. Following the discussion, the organisation decided to start the campaign across Uttarakhand.
Lalit Farswan said the state’s youth are struggling to find employment despite government claims regarding jobs and self-employment. He said young people are not getting sufficient employment opportunities according to their qualifications and needs.
Farswan said the campaign is not about asking the government for employment as a favour, but about demanding work and dignified employment as a right for the state’s youth.
He said the campaign will be launched in at least one block in each of Uttarakhand’s 13 districts within the next two months. The first phase will begin in Joshimath block of Chamoli district. The campaign will also be launched initially in Haridwar, Dehradun, Udham Singh Nagar and Nainital districts.
The organisation said the campaign will subsequently be expanded to every district, block and gram panchayat. During the campaign, its representatives will interact with young people, rural residents and panchayat representatives to identify their employment-related problems.
Deepak Rathore said the overall development of Uttarakhand would not be possible without strengthening its villages. He said employment opportunities could be expanded in rural areas through local resources, MGNREGA, small and cottage industries, agriculture, horticulture, animal husbandry, tourism and self-employment.
Rathore said the government should formulate a concrete and long-term employment policy. The organisation will demand early recruitment to vacant government posts, transparency in recruitment processes, priority for local youth, effective implementation of self-employment schemes and creation of new employment opportunities in villages.
The organisation said it would raise these issues with the government based on the problems identified during the campaign.
