Jammu, Mar 30: The opposition members from BJP and the National Panthers Party
 Tuesday staged walk out from the Legislative Assembly to express their dissatisfaction with the recently announced employment policy by the coalition government.
 The protesting members also criticised the ruling National Conference for “backtracking from its promise of providing a job to one person of every family, made by senior party leaders during assembly elections.”
 Replying to a question in the House, Minister for Labour, Employment and Higher Education Abdul Gani Malik said the government was encouraging educated unemployment youth to take up self-employment ventures as has been envisaged in the Sher-e-Kashmir Employment Policy announced by the Government.
 The Minister said the policy has been meticulously framed to involve youth, including professionals, to set up income generating units, by offering attractive incentives. He said besides, offering seed money, provision for technical and other assistance are the essential ingredient of the self Employment Scheme.
 Giving details about the provisions kept for professionals like doctors, engineers and other technically trained persons, the Minister informed the House that all the doctors who are desirous of opening polyclinics shall be given finance under Self-Employment Scheme.
 He further said that the engineering graduates have already been organized in Self-Help-Groups to take up income generating avenues, as per their specialization. He said mini projects in the State like railways, hydro projects like Uri Civil, Baghliar etc., have engaged a large number of engineering pass-outs and it has opened opportunities for them.
 However, NPP MLA from Ramnagar Harshdev Singh attacked the government for not keeping its promise of setting middle pass as the basic qualification for various recruitments. He also disapproved the Voluntary Service Allowance and said that the set criteria was so rigorous that no one would be able to get the allowance
 Listing the eligibility criteria for VSA, he said that the income slab of 50, 000 and other qualifying conditions indicate that even a man associated with boot polishing cannot avail this allowance. He also referred to the commitment of absorbing IIT electricians in the government jobs made   by the NC leadership.
 Singh also wanted to know about the fate of Agriculture Technocrats who have been engaged as Rehbar-e-Zirat.  
 BJP state president and MLA Ashok Khajurai said that former Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah had committed to provide job to one member of each family when he came to meet unemployed educated youth sitting on Dharna at Mubrak Mandi.  
 Later in his reply, the Minister said that providing Voluntary Service Allowance was not the ‘ultimate aim’ of the policy but encouraging youth to take up self employment schemes for which the government will give certain incentives, including seed money and training. He also said that revision of certain conditions can also be done in due course of implementation.
 The opposition members, however, termed the reply of the minister as casual and staged walk out from the House.

Lastupdate on : Tue, 30 Mar 2010 21:30:00 Makkah time
Lastupdate on : Tue, 30 Mar 2010 18:30:00 GMT
Lastupdate on : Wed, 31 Mar 2010 00:00:00 IST